Lord Leslie Turnberg, Hope Hospital’s first Professor of Medicine, returned to Salford to mark its 40th anniversary as a university teaching trust.
Lord Turnberg, who grew up in Lower Broughton, unveiled a plaque on the Salford Royal building named after him and gave a lecture to staff and guests about the past, present and future of the NHS.
He was welcomed by Chief Executive Sir David Dalton, who said Lord Turnberg had played a pivotal role in the Trust’s development as a pioneering organisation. Since 1974, the Trust has helped to train thousands of doctors but its links with The University of Manchester also helped to bring about new departments, new specialisms, extra staff and more research.
Lord Turnberg, an eminent gastroenterologist whose research shed new light on Crohn’s disease and colitis, left Salford in 1997. He has also served as President of the Royal College of Physicians, was one of the founders of the Academy of Medical Sciences and is still active in the House of Lords at 80.
He hailed Salford Royal as an exemplar of how the NHS should be run and especially praised the way the Trust is working with social services and local GPs to integrate services. He added: “You have become a beacon of light in the NHS, the hospital just one element in a seamless service.”
He is pictured with his wife, Lady Edna Turnberg, at the plaque unveiling.