Arnold Elliott

Arnold Elliott was born in Belfast on 27 January 1921 and graduated from Queen’s University Medical School, Belfast, in 1944. He was a tireless champion of the NHS, joining as a singlehanded general practitioner in 1948. From early on in his career, he promoted the cause of primary care at a time when hospital medicine was seen as the glamorous branch of medicine. He always strived to do the best for his patients, sometimes having to battle against what he regarded as over-bureaucratisation of the health service and depersonalisation of health care. He championed neglected and Cinderella services such as mental health and social work, serving for 10 years on the Central Council for Education and Training of Social Workers (CETSWA).

He was a committed socialist and trade unionist, and was a frequent speaker at the Trades Union Congress …