Dr Stanley Hewitt, former Consultant Obstetrician/Gynaecologist in Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe and Past Chairman of the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists passed away on 16 May 2009 aged 91. He will be remembered for the pioneering work he did for Portiuncula Hospital and for his patients.

After Marlborough, he went to St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical College in London, where he was a prominent sportsman, captaining the United London Hospitals' hockey team and appearing in a trial for the England international team. In 1941, shortly after qualifying, Stanley joined the Royal Navy as a Medical Officer where he served on ships involved in forays to the coast of occupied France, and was heavily involved in the Normandy landings on D-Day.

Despite his specialist training, Stanley spent eight years as a Senior Registrar after the war. His search for a consultant post was hindered by the great numbers of available trained specialists following the war and the fact that his firm Catholic principles prevented him from carrying out some of the procedures that were considered normal for gynaecologists in the UK.

Stanley arrived in Ballinasloe in 1962 at the relatively advanced age of 45. It is difficult now to contemplate what he was taking on. The Maternity Unit was very run down largely because of the long-drawn-out, fatal illness of his predecessor. Stanley built up the maternity practice and was the first of the consultants to look for a consultant colleague in his own speciality.

More importantly, he also put Portiuncula on the Irish medical map. He was a founder member of the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and eventually became the first Chairman from outside the main teaching hospitals. He was also a respected President of the Obstetric Section of the Royal Academy of Medicine in Dublin.

When Stanley read about experimental work being done on the use of Anti-D Gamma Globulin in the prevention of Rhesus disease, he and Dr Niall Walsh approached the drug firm conducting the trials. They enrolled Portiuncula in these trials and eventually travelled to New York to present their results at an international meeting.

However, perhaps their greatest moment was when a letter in a British Medical Journal referred to ‘work being carried out in New York, Liverpool, Ballinasloe AND OTHER WORLD CENTRES’.

Stanley was a fantastic ambassador for Portiuncula. Even after his retirement in 1982, he continued for many years to chair two committees in the hospital. Eventually ill health and age restricted his mobility, but he always had a great welcome for those who took the trouble to visit him and was keen to hear what was going on.

Stanley Hewitt was a quiet man with a self-deprecating sense of humour. His chief interest in life was his wife and their only son, Martin who died tragically died young.