After taking more than two years out of medicine to study Landscape Architecture with the University of Edinburgh, I returned to Aberdeen as a newly married man. After an interview with Dr John Callender I was appointed as a locum senior house officer on Strathbogie ward, Royal Cornhill Hospital. There I worked for Dr Douglas Gibb Fowlie. I was fortunate to gain his trust and he supported me from day one and encouraged me to train in psychiatry. After further interview I was offered a training placement and in total spent 18 months on Strathbogie ward working for Dr Fowlie.
Strathbogie ward and most of the old hospital was knocked down many years ago and is now the site of housing. However, I have fond memories of Strathbogie and the light-filled corridors that led to it with framed prints of Aberdeenshire hanging on the walls.
The following is part of a message in an old newspaper. It dates from a time before I worked in Strathbogie and I have removed all identifying details
