After 20 years as Director of The Wesley Hospital’s Pain and Spine Centre, Dr Leigh Atkinson was honoured and thanked by The Wesley Executive and colleagues ahead of his retirement.

The Wesley Hospital’s Director of Medical Services Dr Jim Houston said Dr Atkinson has been the cornerstone of neurosurgery in Brisbane for a generation and had a significant influence on the development of Pain Medicine.

“Dr Atkinson trained a large number of neurosurgeons in Queensland. He was awarded Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (Neurosurgeons) in 1971, a Fellowship of the Australian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine (RACP) in 1980, and Fellowship of the Faculty of Pain Medicine (FPM) at the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists in 1999, in addition to numerous other national and international accolades.”

Dr Houston referenced Dr Atkinson’s special interest in the non-interventional approach to managing persistent pain, through The Wesley’s Pain Management rehabilitation programs.

“Dr Atkinson has been pivotal in ensuring Queenslanders have access to chronic pain services in both the private and public arenas. We have been very fortunate to have Dr Atkinson at The Wesley for the past two decades, as Director of the Wesley Pain Unit since 2001.”

“Thank you, from The Wesley staff and patients for your tireless work, focussing on the expansion and improvement of pain management services across Queensland