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being able to establish his medical practice over the next few years, and more importantly made it possi- ble to stay in Picayune. Dr. Bolton was in practice for 42 years in Picayune. During those early years his clinic would be open and staffed seven days a week. “We worked all day on Saturday and a half day on Sundays,” he explained. Through his many years of providing medical serv- ices and care to the Picayune community, there are a few occasions that Dr. Bolton remembered vividly. These are included as excerpts from his memoirs he has been compiling over the past year. These are offered in first person. After four years of medical school, I took my state board exam in order to obtain a medical license. Im- mediately after, I started a one year internship at Macon Hospital in Macon, GA. The primary respon- sibility of the 12 interns was to take care of the indi- gent (charity) patients. This entailed 36 hours on duty, 12 hours off duty. Then the rotation began again. My first rotation was surgery. I had never liked sur- gery in medical school and did not want to be a sur- geon. I had 3 months of this rotation, then had 3 months of medicine, And 2 months each of pedi- atrics, ob-gyn and emergency room. My primary duty on surgery was to work-up (prepare) the patients for their operation. This meant I did a history, physical exam, and then made sure the patient was medically able to have surgery. I did not perform surgery as this was done either by the resident physician (who was also in training but further up the totem pole than me) or the attending physician. Other duties included treating patients in the outpatient clinic. One of first patients in the outpatient clinic had been diagnosed with carcinoma of the upper rectum with metastasis to the liver. The reason he was coming to the outpatient clinic was to have fluid removed from his abdominal cavity. This condition is called ascites and is usually caused by liver disease. He presented at the clinic weekly and approximately 3- 4 gallons of fluid had to be withdrawn from his ab- domen. This was accomplished by puncturing the abdomen just below the navel with a one-inch diam- eter metal tube. It was a very gruesome and painful procedure for the patient. www.southernsenior.info 19 . GRO WE MAKE IT OGETHER T AND W tme es inv is an ommuni C nt. yt as f BankPlus w ound a true community b And we’ve been serving ommunities f c or over 10 To us, this means much than banking. We’re com f to improving quality o li our customers and neigh BankPlus. It’s more than It’s a promise. Learn mor bankplus.net . ed as ank. our 0 years. more mitted fe and bors. a name. e at Member FDIC. © Copyright 2022 BankPlus.