President David Granger has joined the local medical fraternity as it continues to mourn the death of Dr Wallace Irving Lee, commonly known as Dr “Bud” Lee.
He died on Saturday after a brief illness at the age of 87. Dr Lee was a Director on the Board of the Woodlands Hospital and also served as a general surgeon at the private institution, which he co-founded back in 1969.
On Sunday, President Granger extended heartfelt sympathy to his wife, Marlene Lee; their children; the management and staff of the Woodlands Hospital, and other relatives and friends.
“Dr Lee was an outstanding Guyanese and professional in his field. It is for this reason he was awarded the Golden Arrowhead of Achievement and, later, the Cacique Crown of Honour for his exemplary service,” the Head of State noted in a statement from the Ministry of the Presidency.
Dr Lee’s colleagues have also expressed their condolences on his passing.
A public wake will be held at the Woodlands Hospital location on Carmichael Street, Georgetown, this evening from 19:00h.
In a newsletter published by the Woodlands Hospital, it was stated that Dr Lee, or as he is known by his friends and colleagues as “Bud”, was a consultant surgeon at Woodlands Hospital, where he had been since its inception.
He was born in Georgetown on July 14, 1932, and was one of three sons. His primary education was obtained at the Christ Church Primary School, and his secondary schooling was obtained at Queen’s College, where he had the distinction of being “Head Boy”.
He did medicine at the University of the West Indies and his FRCS [Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons qualification] in Edinburgh. When he returned to Guyana, he worked as a Consultant in Surgery at Georgetown Public Hospital, the newsletter stated.
There, it added, he had to do all specialties in surgery, including orthopaedics, urology and neurology.
Dr Lee had also worked at Prasad’s Hospital, Medical Arts Centre, and St Joseph Mercy Hospital.
According to the newsletter, his vision for Woodlands had been to provide the best possible service for its patients. “The hospital has lost a stalwart,” a notice from Woodlands stated.
In addition to receiving two national awards for his contribution to medicine, he was also recognised by his peers for his contribution to surgery when he received an award from ‘The Institute of Medicine, GPHC’.
In addition to music and reading, Lee also loved sport growing up and has represented Guyana in squash and badminton. In fact, he was called-up for trials for Guyana’s cricket team at the same time he had to attend university, but chose his education. However, he played squash up to the time of his demise.
