TWENTY seven Beaumont Street has been a GP surgery since 1950.

Founded by Cousins Patrick and Martin Stewart, the practice initially served the ‘slums of Oxford’ in the St Ebbes quarter, now where the Westgate Centre stands.

The two doctors were in high demand as primary medical care suddenly became accessible to all under the new NHS.

It was often the case that when on a home visit the patients’ friends, family members and neighbours would often drop in to make use of the un-suspecting GP, according to Martin Stewart’s daughter, Jane Curran.

Her father was even asked on one occasion to examine a chimp at the St Giles’ Fair.

Mrs Curran said: “He would always say there was a difference between the people in the ‘big houses’.

“The patients in St Ebbes were less used to having a doctor so they would be much less reluctant to contact him.”

And regardless of whether they were from the ‘slums’ or living in the ‘big houses’, the patients always came first.

Mrs Curran said: “I remember him visiting patients on Christmas morning, the ones who didn’t have anyone living with them, just to say hello.”

The surgery, housed in a grand three-storey building near to the Ashmolean Museum, now provides care to more than 7,000 people.

And it’s true to say that the ideals of the NHS displayed by Martin Stewart, are still held today.

Even if advances in medicine has seen treatments change, and perhaps GPs no longer make visits to treat circus animals, but the patients still come first.

Partner at the practice, Dr David McCartney, said: “One of the most rewarding aspects of being a GP is being able to look after people over a long period of time.

“Knowing patients over the years means you get to know their medicines but you also find out about their lives too.”

Advanced Nurse Practitioner and practice partner Debra Sprague, added: “That’s why we chose to go into Primary Care. We create these relationships that can last a lifetime.”