MARY Stuart, 94, has treated generations of patients for 67 years from her Bexley general practice.
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Dr Stuart practised old school medicine, listening to her patients and working without a computer up until she closed her practice on June 30.
"I had to get in before the start of the new financial year," she joked.
Dr Stuart graduated from the University of Sydney in 1944 — one of only a handful of women in her class.
She opened her Bexley Road practice in 1948 with her husband and the two worked side by side every day until he died 10 years ago.
They had met during a university lecture.
"The time I really noticed him was when we were working on a cadaver," she said.
"He and another boy were on the head and a girl and I were on the male pelvis.
"He kept making jokes.
"I thought he was dreadful."
They became class partners the following year and in 1945 they were married.
She said she knew as a young girl she wanted to become a GP.
"I remember being nine or 10 and telling my mother I wanted to become a doctor," she said.
"She thought that was amazing."
Despite other opportunities she never wanted to move from her practice.
"You get to know everyone in the area," she said.
"I love getting to know patients, having the chance to be a part of their lives.
"I like to talk. You learn a lot from people just by listening."
There was no pomp or ceremony on the popular doctor's last day. Instead, patients wrote memories of their time with her in a book.
In the immediate future, she will concentrate on finalising her practice and spending time with her three daughters and grandchildren.
Have you been treated by Dr Stuart?
