GPs’ 100 years of NHS service
TWO married GPs have celebrated a milestone of working for a combined 100 years at their NHS surgery.
Drs Mridul and Saroj Datta, both 81, met at medical school in Calcutta, India, then moved to Britain in 1965.
They opened their surgery in July 1971 and have worked there ever since, with no plans to retire.
Mr Datta said: “We are grateful to all our staff, past and present for their support, and to our patients who have stuck with us, some of them over four generations.”
Mrs Datta simply said: “We worked together and we survived.”
After emigrating the Dattas, who have three children and seven grandchildren, settled in Blackburn.
They married in 1966 and both worked at Queen’s Park Hospital.
As well as opening the Stepping Stones Practice, Mr Datta set up the
North-west’s first vasectomy clinic. Dr Mark Dziobon, of Pennine Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “GP practices and primary care are the foundation of the NHS. Colleagues like Drs Mridul and Saroj Datta ensure this foundation is solid, high-quality and long-lasting.”