Dr Edmond Augustine Condon

1946–2010

Edmond (“Dr Ed”) was born in Tipperary, Ireland, the eldest son in a family of 11. He was educated by the Christian Brothers and entered medical school at Cork University in Oct­ober, 1965. He passed the final exam in the winter of 1972, receiving the degree of MBBCh from the National University of Ireland.

Ed went on to complete an internship in medicine and surgery in 1973, followed by 6-month residency in each of obstetrics, anesthetics, and pediatrics at Limerick Regional Hospital. It was here he met his future wife, Caroline, and they were married in Adare, Ireland, on 24 May 1974. 

In the fall of 1975 Ed, Caroline, and their first child Colm moved to Liverpool, England, where Ed studied anesthetics at the Walton and Fazakerly Hospitals. In May 1977, he was success­ful in the final exam for the fellowship of the faculty of anesthe­tists of the Royal College of Surgeons Dublin. 

In January 1978 Dr Ed arrived in Canada as a landed immigrant, settling in Kitimat, where he worked as a GP anesthetist at the Kitimat General Hospital. One month later he was join­ed by Caroline and his young sons, Colm and Billy. He passed the LMCC exam in May 1978 and registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons in August of that year. 

The Kitimat years were busy with a full operating schedule, frequent emergency calls, snowy winters, and the birth of three more children, Paul, Katy, and Sheila. In March 1987 he be­came a Canadian citizen. In September the family moved to Vancouver, where Ed worked in family practice in partnership with his wife, also doing emergency shifts at St. Vincent’s Hospital. 

In September 1995 Dr Ed joined the Echelon Rehabilitation Clinic as a GP with a special interest in treating patients with musculoskeletal injuries and degenerative musculoskeletal disorders. He worked at the clinic until his sudden death in the late evening of 7 November 2010. 
He is survived by his mother, Kitty, aged 92, nine siblings in Ireland, and one sister in Calgary. Also left behind are his wife Caroline, five children, and grandchildren Ella and Desmond. 

Ed enjoyed running (even in Kitimat at -20°), doing crosswords, reading the financial papers, and watching sports and cooking shows on TV. Ed’s ideal weekend included hours of gardening, a large family gathering, and several glasses of good wine. He had a brilliant mind and enjoyed the challenge of medical legal work, being a strong advocate for his patients, many of whom had nobody else to turn to. 

When he was forced to stop running due to a ruptured Achilles tendon, and later a back condition, he enjoyed many hours riding his stationary bike in his beloved garden. 

Ed was a fit, vibrant man with a strong presence and great sense of humor. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends, patients, medical colleagues, and the legal community. 
—Caroline Condon, MBChB
Vancouver