jjablkowski's blog

Roger Angle, a longtime contributor to the New York Times, died 2 years ago at age 101.

The recent closure of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC Library brought back all sorts of library-related memories. My mind went to 1949 when I was a penniless second-year premed student at McGill University. To earn a few extra dollars, I worked at the McGill Medical Library on Thursday afternoons. My task was to push carts heavily loaded with bound volumes of medical journals to their appropriate shelves. Today we click on our computers to perform extensive background research for scientific projects or to resolve clinical dilemmas.

The UBC Medicine Spring Gala is a yearly celebration of the visual and performing arts, where UBC medical students from all 4 years come together to showcase their talents and passions from outside medicine. It is a beloved event that brings together the medical community, and promotes connection, healing, and shared appreciation of creative expression.

How time passes; how things change. That was the first thought that came to mind when I read (and somewhat unbelievingly reread) the announcement that the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC Library is closing its door. Many memories came to mind, including that of my brief meeting with Dr W.D. Keith. He was the pioneer library organizer for the Vancouver Medical Association way back in the early 1900s.

On my 10th birthday in September 1939 I came down with a bad cold that turned into a bad earache. I remember crying when the family doctor looked at my ear and told my Mom he was going to ask the ear, nose, and throat specialist to look at me. The otolaryngologist arrived on his bicycle, as was the norm in my native Hungary in the late 1930s; hardly any doctors had cars. His black bag was in the basket attached to his handlebars. He chatted with my Mom for a few minutes, then he sat at the edge of my bed and asked me to sit up and dangle my feet at the bedside.