Page 30 - BHTA 100 years

M“emories from... Colin Peacock
Peacocks Medical Group’s primary association with the BHTA has
been with our Orthotic Company and is the primary vehicle for negotiations with the NHS. My rst initiative was in the early 1970s when I wrote a paper suggesting that we should move to a National Tariff for pricing and compete with each other on service. My view was based on the arrangement with Pharmacy dispensing of approved drugs. This idea received scant support, but has resurfaced on a regular basis throughout my career.
Things really started to happen around the 1970s with the British Insitute of Surgical Technologists (BIST), which partnered with BSTA and represented Orthotics, Prosthetics, Surgical Instrument Makers and Dental Technicians. Up to this time Orthotists were usually technicians who had gained experience of manufacturing and had the personality and skill to work in hospital clinics dispensing prescriptions from Surgeons and Physicians.
They often did not have any medically related training. BSTA/BIST ran evening lectures in London at Caxton Hall which were available to all members but were accessed mostly by people working close enough to London. A new graduate, Alan Drew, had entered the eld of Orthotics with a non-related degree and recognised that in order to improve the service to patients and improve education, a professional grouping should be explored. He found a very rm ally in Ian Sherwood who was then Secretary of BSTA/BIST.
They set about contacting people known in the various regions of the UK to canvas their interest in holding an exploratory meeting into creating a professional society. The meeting was held in Stourbridge on a Saturday morning and enthusiastically blossomed into The National Orthotic ” Committee (NOC) of BIST which continued to meet regularly.
BHTA 100 years