OUTGROWING the modest practice rooms within his weatherboard residence at 110 Corio Street, Dr Reginald Mills responded to the growing demands of his Lister House practice by relocating in 1941 to two adjoining, two-storey brick buildings at 157 Maude Street. The new premises offered a striking contrast, with several doctors’ rooms, a small practice theatre, sterilisation rooms, reception, waiting room and, perhaps most importantly, the capacity to welcome additional doctors.
At a time when the role of a general practitioner extended far beyond consultation and referral, doctors not only treated patients in their offices but also oversaw their hospital care, performed minor surgeries and often pursued special interests in particular fields, all while maintaining deeply personal connections with the families they served.
It was within this context that Lister House began to flourish, establishing its reputation as a centre for skilled and compassionate medicine. Among the early practitioners to join Dr Mills was Dr Alec Taylor, a post-war obstetrician and gynaecologist whose care would touch families across Shepparton and beyond.
Remembered by colleagues and patients alike as a “very generous, good fellow” who was not only kind and compassionate but also an artisan of “bad jokes”, Dr Taylor joined Dr Mills at Lister House. True to form, he reportedly shaved off his moustache after a patient once looked at him and declared they wanted to “see a younger doctor.”
Joining Dr Mills and Dr Taylor at 157 Maude Street in 1968, Dr Graeme Jones recalled how Dr Mills’ son took up residence on one of the building’s second floors as a dentist:
“Dr Mills’ son, Graham, had been at school in Melbourne, and the story goes that Dr Mills (Graham’s father) and the headmaster of his school had a conversation about ‘what to do with Graham’ and decided that he’d become a dentist.”
Having been “headhunted” by Lister House after completing six months of postgraduate work at Mooroopna and District Base Hospital, Dr Jones described the wide-ranging duties of a GP in that era:
“Back then, general practitioners did obstetrics, anaesthetics—everything. The hospital had specialists, but the GPs would also have their own private patients that they would look after.”
Every Friday morning, the doctors of Lister House had use of the Mooroopna and District Base Hospital theatres, performing their own operations, a stark contrast to the specialised medical landscape of today. Procedures included appendicectomies, tonsillectomies, obstetrics and anaesthetics, all performed by the same trusted doctors who cared for their patients day to day.
Dr Jones went on to become a senior partner in the practice, specialising in obstetrics and delivering thousands of babies throughout his career. Together with Dr Taylor, he helped establish a renowned obstetric service that became a defining feature of Lister House for many years to come. Dr Jones is thought to have performed the first operation at Goulburn Valley Hospital and estimated he delivered around 2,000 babies—often welcoming the children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren of his earliest patients.
Beginning his career at Lister House as a locum in 1963, Dr Roger Key stepped into his new role when fellow doctor Dr Peter Levin, who would later become a renowned paediatric specialist and instrumental in establishing vital paediatric and neonatal services at GV Base Hospital, suffered the unfortunate mishap of “a ball and racquet coinciding with his eye.” Developing a particular interest in GP anaesthetics and possessing a keen business savvy, Dr Key readily advanced to junior assistant and then on to senior partner thereafter.
Further painting a picture of the work culture of the time, Dr Key recalled:
“We would start work around 9 a.m., having already done the hospital rounds beforehand. We’d break for lunch around 12:30 p.m., often taking home patient record cards to write up at the same time. I always preferred sandwiches so I could eat with my left hand and write patient histories with the other.
” I’d usually return to the practice around 2 p.m. and finish around 6 p.m., though often later than that.”
Ideally seeing about four patients an hour, Dr Key added:
“You’d inevitably get a sudden phone call from the labour ward saying someone was about to deliver. So, you’d have to tell the patients, ‘Can you hang on for an hour?’ Then rush off to do the delivery, come back and carry on. It was pretty rare for me to be home before 6:30 p.m., often it was 7 or even later.”
Despite the heavy workload, it was the camaraderie, humour and shared commitment to patient care that Dr Bruce Sterling remembers most fondly from his early days in the practice.
At the end of his second year as a Resident at Mooroopna and District Base Base Hospital, Dr Sterling joined the local medical practice in 1974, just weeks after Dr John Pedrotti, who, like him, would go on to become a long-serving partner. Their arrival completed the team of doctors at the time, which included Dr Roger Key, Dr Graeme Jones, Dr Alec Taylor and Dr Peter Levin.
Remaining at Lister House until his retirement in 2017, Dr Sterling dedicated more than four decades to the health and wellbeing of the community.
Reflecting on those early years, he recalled the light-hearted banter that often helped balance the pressures of the job. One story, in particular, highlighted the unique layout of their part of town:
“It was funny and it became a bit of a joke. On the corner was the pub [The Aussie Hotel]. Next door was the optometrist, so you could see where you were going after you’d had a few drinks. Then came the chemist, so you could get something for the hangover. Then there was us—the doctors, and just down the road on the left was the funeral parlour.”
Collaborative and supportive, while fostering a culture of encouragement, the team of doctors at Lister House shared the responsibilities of night calls and weekend clinics. Into this industrious and close-knit environment came Dr Paul O’Dwyer in 1981 —a talented young registrar, specifically headhunted by the practice. He joined as a trainee under the newly introduced Family Medicine Program. In addition to Dr O’Dwyer, Lister House welcomed its first female doctors in Dr Jeneane Rae and Dr Krista Tavcar, who joined the practice in the mid 1980s as an assistant.
Dr O’Dwyer would go on to become a partner in the practice and one of the first in a long line of young doctors to be trained at Lister House. His arrival marked the beginning of a strong teaching tradition, helping to establish Lister House as the renowned and highly sought-after centre of medical learning it is today.
By all accounts a thriving, burgeoning practice, Lister House Medical Centre had transformed from a small doctor’s surgery to a fully-fledged medical institution. By 1989, the practice once again needed to relocate, this time to accommodate its growing staff and expanded patient care services.
