Eric Anson (22 November 1892 – 5 June 1969) was

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

's first specialist

anaesthetist Anesthesiology, anaesthesiology, or anaesthesia is the medical specialty concerned with the total perioperative care of patients before, during and after surgery. It encompasses anesthesia, intensive care medicine, critical emergency medicine ...

. He was the first President of the New Zealand Society of Anaesthetists (NZSA) and a member of the NZ Committee of the Faculty of Anaesthetists.

Early life and education

Anson was born in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

and educated at Wangurai Collegiate School. He went to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

, and then to St Thomas's Hospital St Thomas's Hospital Medical School now part of King's College London, from which he graduated in January 1916.

Career

He served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and in May 1917 was wounded in action. After the war, he worked as an anaesthetist in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

before returning to New Zealand in 1922 to practise anaesthetics as a specialty – the first New Zealander qualified to do so. Between the wars Anson practised in Wellington and was a key figure in the New Zealand Branch of the British Medical Association. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he served in the New Zealand Army Medical Corps, both in Egypt and on the hospital ship Oranje. From late 1945 to 1957 he was Director of Anaesthetics to the

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

hospitals, where he was a pioneer in cardiothoracic anaesthesia. He was especially well regarded by Sir

George Douglas Robb Sir George Douglas Robb (1899–1974) was a New Zealand surgeon, medical reformer, writer, and university chancellor. Career He was born at Auckland on 29 April 1899 and educated at the Auckland Grammar School and at the University of Otago ( ...

for his ability to have his patients wake up promptly enough to say "Thank you, Mr. Robb" before leaving theatre.

References

* * 1892 births 1969 deaths Alumni of St Thomas's Hospital Medical School Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge New Zealand anaesthetists People from Wellington City Royal Navy personnel of World War I 20th-century New Zealand medical doctors New Zealand military personnel of World War II {{NewZealand-mil-bio-stub