The original founding partners of what is now Anniesland Medical Practice were Daniel McFarlane and Robert Black. Their partnership formed in 1928. Both had served during the First World War: Dr McFarlane in the Cameron Highlanders and Dr Black in the Royal Navy. They had met at Glasgow University in 1919 and had graduated in 1924.
The original ‘surgery’ was a former confectioners shop which is now the manager’s office of Lloyds bank at Anniesland . It consisted of two consulting room sand a small waiting room which often overflowed onto the pavement outside. Record keeping was minimal and there were no appointments. It was very much first come first served.
Despite the rapid growth of the number of patients mainly due to the new Knightswood housing estate, it remained a two partner practice throughout the Second World War. Dr William Blair joined in 1946 and Dr J Maxwell Hamilton about a year later. The partnership welcomed the introduction of the NHS in July 1948.
All four doctors were founding members of the Royal College of General Practitioners. As a consequence of this they were among the first to offer educational attachments during the summer holidays to senior medical students- a pioneering development in medical education adding to the practice’s already well recognised reputation for excellence.
In 1962 the practice moved to much larger premises 778 Crow Road. With this move the Practice came to occupy premises which were the envy of other GPs. There was an office, a waiting room, each doctor had his own consulting room and there was even accommodation remaining where the receptionist lived in a two room flat.
Work in Practice expanded rapidly, the patient list grew and soon the partnership grew, joined early on by Dr JM Hamilton and then by Dr Donald McFarlane, son of Dr Daniel McFarlane.
Anniesland Medical Practice ( at that time called “The Crow Road Surgery”) was, and is, an innovative, forward thinking Practice. They were among the first in Glasgow to have an attached Health Visitor and District Nurse. Dr Blair was the first to offer medical students a chance to experience work outside hospital and he was an early Trainer of GPs.
Dr Black was succeeded by Dr Sheila Martin (women in Practice were few and far between at that time), and Dr McFarlane Sr by Dr David Lyon who was, on emigration to Australia, replaced in 1974 by Dr David Blair, son of Dr William, who, in turn, on his retiral was succeeded by Dr Alastair Short. Alastair was a notable figure in GP education in Scotland whose life was tragically cut short when he was killed in a fall on Mont Blanc in 2003. In the meantime Dr Diane Kiernan and then Dr Marise McQueen had followed Dr Hamilton.
Further expansion of the Practice led to the addition of Dr Jane Campbell with Dr Helen Irvine succeeding Dr McFarlane and Dr Jennifer Leitch replacing Dr McQueen. In Dr Short’s place came Dr Barry Gibson-Smith. After the retirement of Dr. David Blair, Dr. David Taylor joined the Practice.
The next major Practice event came in October 2003 when it finally burst out of, by now completely inadequate premises in Crow Road to its present modern, designed for purpose building in Munro Place. There is room here for the large team of Doctors, Practice Nurses, Community Nurse, Health Visitors and Administrative staff, the space allowing for efficient functioning under the guidance of the Manager, Lesley Cameron. In 2019, Lesley stepped back from the partnership and was replaced by Lynn Mulraney. The partnership changed again with the arrival of Dr Lucy Steel and Dr Gemma Cross, the departure of Dr Jennifer Leitch and the addition of Dr Jamie Hunter.
The Practice continues to be innovative, being one of the pioneers in computerisation and more recently one of the first to be “paperless”. It continues to be involved in GP training, each year taking on a GP Registrar who is completing their training in the specialty. Undergraduate medical students are taught as are doctors returning to practice after some time out and doctors wishing to maintain their skills in part-time practice.