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Obituaries
Barry Gilbert Elliott RFD, M.B.B.S., F.R.A.C.S. (OW1959)
18/6/1941 – 28/5/2021
Barry was born in Elmore, the elder son of Sheila and Gilbert Elliott. He initially attended Diggora West and Rochester schools, then became a boarder at Wesley. He was Captain of Tennis in 1959 and continued to play tennis throughout his working life.
After Matriculation Barry entered Queens College, University of Melbourne to study Medicine, graduating M.B.B.S. in 1965. At the end of his fourth year studying he married Glenys McDonald, beginning a wonderfully happy marriage of almost 58 years.
In 1969 Barry joined the RAAF Reserve and had two tours of duty to Butterworth Air Base in Malaysia. He was Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon to Laverton and Point Cook RAAF Bases and Puckapunyal Army Base, and was awarded the Reserve Forces Decoration (RFD) in 1991. He held the rank of Group Captain when he retired.
In 1971 he became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and in 1976 a Fellow of the Australian Orthopaedic Association. In 1978, he became a member of the Australian Hand Surgery Society.
In 1973 Barry and his family went to Edinburgh, Scotland where he worked at the Royal Infirmary and Princess Margaret Rose Orthopaedic Hospital. Having gained more experience in orthopaedic and hand surgery in Edinburgh, he returned to Melbourne with his family in 1974 to take up a new appointment as Honorary Orthopaedic Consultant at the Alfred Hospital and the Royal Children’s Hospital.
In that year Barry also commenced private orthopaedic practice at Cabrini Hospital, continuing until he retired in 2005. He became Head of Orthopaedic Unit 1 at the Alfred Hospital in 1997, and in 2000 he was appointed the inaugural Musculoskeletal Co-Director there, retaining both positions until retirement.
In 1981 he was appointed a member of the Physiotherapy Board of Victoria and served until 1999. The following year he was appointed to the Medical Panels of Victoria and sat at Panels until retirement.
Through the Australian Orthopaedic Association’s Outreach Program, Barry visited Indonesia many times as an External Examiner for orthopaedic trainees taking their final examinations. He also visited Fiji several times to operate and teach Fijian orthopaedic trainees.
Barry was passionate about medical history and had a large collection of very old anatomy and orthopaedic surgery books. He was a member of the Medical History Society and regularly attended their meetings.
In 1994, thinking they must never be bored in retirement, Barry and Glenys bought land in Chanters Lane, Fern Hill, and established Chanters Ridge Vineyard, specialising in pinot noir. He was passionate about wine and his wines won many prizes which delighted him.
Barry lived life to the full, but his love for his wife and family always came first. He was immensely proud of his daughters, Simone, Andrea and Tania (OW1989), his son-in-law, Justin (Bob) Boyer, and his grandchildren, Rebecca, Thomas, Lachlan and Benjamin Boyer, and Lucas Toffano, who is in Year 7 at Wesley.
Barry is survived by his wife Glenys, daughters Simone, Andrea, Tania, son-in-law Justin, his grandchildren and his brother Laurie (OW1961). May he rest in peace.