My friend and colleague Lawrence Wilson, who has died aged 52 of a stroke, trained a generation of anaesthetists in the north-west of England and led the intensive care unit at the Countess of Chester hospital during the pandemic. The respect and affection with which he was held was made clear during his own final days in hospital, as every clinician who looked after him had a fondly remembered story to tell.
Lawrence was born in Burnley, Lancashire, the son of Frances (nee Ward) and Richard Wilson. The family moved to nearby Preston when he was seven – he was a proud Preston “Guild baby” (born in a Guild year and attending, in his pram, the week-long celebrations that have been held every 20 years for centuries).
His mother had a part-time job with the North Western electricity board; his father was a railway worker, and the family enjoyed long holidays courtesy of the European rail network, which gave Lawrence an enduring love of travel and adventure.
He attended All Hallows Catholic high school in Penwortham, then Cardinal Newman college, Preston, where he completed arts A-levels, before switching to medicine and graduating from the University of Manchester in 1997. Among his many achievements, he directed and acted in the annual medical school pantomime, appearing in Dr Martens, tutu, rugby shirt and magic wand.
Early on in his career he chose anaesthesia and intensive care, and did his postgraduate training around Liverpool and the north-west. Having attended a local FRCA exam preparation course he was one of four doctors who wrote to suggest how it could be improved. The group were promptly given responsibility to run it and so began a 15-year involvement with the Mersey School of Anaesthesia. His cheerful enthusiasm, high standards and skill at explaining difficult concepts enabled many hundreds to thrive. Fellow consultants and trainees still remark, “Lawrence taught me that”.
Following a fellowship in Perth, Australia, he became a consultant at Arrowe Park hospital, Wirral, in 2008, before moving in 2012 to the Countess of Chester, where he became clinical lead for the intensive care unit in 2019. During the Covid-19 pandemic, he was a constant and recognisable figure on the unit, even when dressed in full PPE. His was among the best performing ICUs in the country.
Lawrence would never describe himself as an athlete but his spiritual home was the French Alps, skiing with friends and family. It was there, with all-day conversations punctuated only by a ski run to the bottom of the next lift before finding a band in a bar in the evening, that he was in his element.
He had a talent for bringing people together. Many were the themed parties he organised, from a Tom Selleck student bash to a Proclaimers 50th birthday celebration; I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) was the first song at his wedding to Julie Dobson in 2006 and his unofficial anthem. Lawrence could be relied upon to supply mirror-balls, laminated song-sheets and joy.
He is survived by Julie and their children, Alexander and Isobel.
