Dr Kevin Murphy is remembered by the medical field for his fierce intellect, his wide interest in all areas of medicine, his amazing diagnostic mind, and his sense of humour. As one doctor recently said, they all know Kevin or of Kevin, his reputation goes before him. He was a noted world leader in many areas.

Kevin was born in 1927 and grew up in Pialba, Hervey Bay. Based on his results in the State Scholarship examination, he received an Archbishop Duhig Bursary, allowing him to board at Nudgee College, where he earned the nick name “10A Murphy” for scoring ‘A’s in all his 10 sub-junior subjects. He completed his Secondary Studies in 1944, during which year he decided to study medicine. However, this was during the war, and his father was in active army service in New Guinea. As he was concerned about the possibility of being the bread-winner of the family, he opted for the shorter Bachelor of Science course at the University of Queensland. When the war ended, he changed course to medicine, and completed his final year Science while studying first year Medicine. Kevin had received Commonwealth Government assistance for the science course, but was ineligible for further assistance for the medicine course as he was deemed to have had a degree. He then needed to fully fund his studies and living costs with several part time jobs including working at the cannery, building footpaths for the council, working at a forestry camp out west, and drinks waiter at Surfers Paradise Hotel.

Kevin graduated with Honours and was awarded the Memorial Prize of the Queensland branch of the British Medical Association for the highest mark in Medicine. He later specialised as physician. Kevin obtained his MRACP in 1957 and was elected FRACP in 1969. Kevin started at the Brisbane General Hospital in 1953 as Resident Medical Officer and by 1957 was a Teaching Medical Registrar in the University Medical Unit. He then moved to the Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) and was appointed Medical Supervisor where he had great involvement in the PAH’s establishment and development of many new departments from 1959. Kevin was Director of the Spinal Injuries Unit when it was established, and through this connection was the inaugural Vice-President of what would become the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Association of Qld. He also established the Renal Unit, and introduced dialysis to the PAH. He set up the haemodialysis programme with the assistance of Dr Bernie Knapp. They had to do the dialysis after work hours, and, utilising the work of Dr John Dique, the first dialysis involved a big wash basin and tubing. When the ICU was opened in 1967, Kevin as the Director of Medicine was responsible for the medical conditions of the patients. He was still managing the Renal Unit then, and at the same time he was also appointed the first Physician-In-Charge of the newly opened Coronary Care ward. He was noted for his collection of ECGs (including Neil Armstrong’s as he took his first step on the moon), which he used to teach medical registrars.

Kevin strongly recommended the establishment of CAT scan and developed ultrasound to the PAH, after seeing them both demonstrated overseas in 1974. He also studied the Doppler examination, and through sessional work in this area, became familiar with flow patterns in the carotid and vertebral arteries. Despite all these duties, Kevin still found time to head General Medical Unit 6, to run a busy outpatient clinic, to investigate patients from a kidney stone research, to attend meetings of the South Brisbane Hospitals Board, and to undertake the afternoon Staff Health Clinic. He was also President of the Medical/Nursing Liaison Committee and president of the PAH Drug Committee at different times, and served on the Queensland Health Department Drug and Instrument Committee.

Kevin made over 50 contributions to medical literature. He also instigated and produced the ‘Medical Proceedings of the Princess Alexandra Hospital’ fortnightly. His non-medical writings include a book of memoirs, Anecdotage, which he described as part anecdote and part dotage. He was highly respected at the hospital, known for being quiet and strict with the Resident MOs and students, but often surprising them with his quick dry wit.

Kevin retired as Medical Director and Deputy Medical Superintendent in 1987, but continued to do locum work for several years at the PAH, RBH, QEII, Logan and Gold Coast Hospitals. Kevin liked to keep fit and was known at the hospital for choosing to take the stairs – by twos – rather than the lift at every opportunity, and he held the unofficial record of running from the ground floor to the 8th floor in 38 seconds, often leaving the Residents and students panting in his wake. He had an early interest in boxing. Later, in his PAH days, he enjoyed squash, and then, in his retirement years, lawn bowls, several times being awarded man of the match, even as recently as a few weeks prior to his death. Kevin was also well known for his love of cryptic crosswords (solving and creating), Citroens, limericks and jokes. Kevin died in November 2018.