John Horder

John Horder was born on 9 December 1919, to Gerald Morley Horder, a quantity surveyor, and his wife Emma. Prior to having her children, Horder's mother Emma, played the violin and attended the Royal Academy of Music. He was educated at Lancing College, Sussex. He originally wanted to be a professional musician in which aim he was influenced and inspired by his grandfather who was a congregational minister. He recalled sitting next to the church organist at the age of 10 and was once given the keys to St Mary's Church in Elsworthy Road, Primrose Hill, so that he could rehearse there, as well as frequently playing at Tewkesbury Abbey in Gloucestershire. He was also interested in literature, philosophy and medicine, and became an accomplished pianist and proficient in watercolour painting. Horder changed his mind about his ambitions at various times. His early education and schooling up until age 19, was concentrated on the humanities and, as a result, when he went up to Oxford University, he started as an open classical scholar, with breaks in Paris studying music. He subsequently switched to medicine as a result of the prospect of war in the 1930s and the desire to study human nature. ==Medical career==

Early general practice After studying medicine at the University of Oxford and then completing a medical registrar post at the London Hospital, Horder entered general practice in 1951 as a locum at John Wigg's practice at Kentish Town. He was at one time president of the section for general practice at the Royal Society of Medicine. On taking up the role of RCGP president, Horder discovered that for young GPs, the college had uncertain significance and questionable meaning, with time constraints being a key issue. He chaired the review of general practice that produced The Future General Practitioner: Learning and Teaching. In addition, he was deeply involved in developing and implementing vocational training for general practice. Horder was the first British general practitioner to be selected as a consultant to the World Health Organization. ==Illness==

There was a history of depression in Horder's family and he too suffered from bouts of severe low mood throughout his life. He had a number of major episodes, the first occurring during the Second World War when he was dismissed from duties and admitted to hospital. Despite the success of the RCGP in promoting his ideals, the strains of a demanding practice and RCGP work in the 1950s contributed to a second episode of severe depression. He was originally a Jungian and sceptical of chemically altering the mind but later became an advocate for anti-depressants, particularly monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI). He once described the pain of depression as more overwhelming than the pain of coronary thrombosis. Much later, he was deeply involved in the Defeat Depression campaign, organised by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the RCGP. ==Later life and legacy==

He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). ==Selected publications==

• General Practice Under the National Health Service 1948–1997. Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1998. (Editor with Irvine Loudon & Charles Webster) Autobiography Horder's autobiography was published in a series of instalments in the London Journal of Primary Care: • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 1 (2008), No. 1, pp. 51–54. (Part 1) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 1 (2008), No. 2, pp. 119–121. (Part 2) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 2 (2009), No. 1, pp. 74–76. (Part 3) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 2 (2009), No. 2, pp. 172–174. (Part 4) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 3 (2010), No. 1, pp. 59–61. (Part 5) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 3 (2010), No. 2, pp. 120–123. (Part 6) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 4 (2011), No. 1, pp. 80–83. (Part 7) • "An Account of My Life", Vol. 4 (2012), No. 2, pp. 144–146. (Part 8) • "An Account of My Life – Reflection", Vol. 4 (2012), No. 2, pp. 147. (Reflection) == References ==