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MO: GP

Margate gave me a different perspective

GP Mo Sohail first came to Margate in December 2003 as a locum doctor in A&E at the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital. He is now a partner at the Bethesda Medical Practice in Cliftonville, Margate – a popular practice serving a mixed area and situated right on the seafront. He lives with his family by the sea in nearby Broadstairs.

Mo recalls: “It was a treat moving to Thanet as I am not a great fan of traffic congestion! I was living in Dagenham in east London, so you can well imagine doing a mile in 45 minutes was not my cup of tea, and getting stuck behind buses every five minutes was no fun either!

“Margate on the other hand provided me with a totally different perspective.

“At the time I had another offer from a hospital in Scotland, however Margate was an easy choice as it was closer to London and reminded me of my home town – Karachi in Pakistan, which is also by the seaside. House prices were a real eyeopener compared to London, and we quickly decided this is where we wanted to live, raise our children (we had one son at the time aged three), grow old and retire.

“I have two sons now. The eldest is 17 and planning to go to university next year. To my surprise and delight he wants to be a GP! He is a keen cricketer like me and plays for our local club in Broadstairs. My younger son is going to be 12 this year and goes to the local grammar school where his brother is in 6th form. This one is an excellent swimmer and wants to be an Olympian.

“My lovely wife is a doctor as well and she works at the local hospital as a staff grade.

“We have no regrets about moving here whatsoever. We have raised our children here and have benefited from quality schools and the great outdoors. We have loved every minute of the outdoor activities we have done together. All of my wife’s family moved to Thanet as well, for the same reasons as us – so for any family celebration we have 22 people in the house!

“There is no other place you can work and make a difference for your patients, while at the same time feel like you’re on holiday every day. East Kent is an amazing place to live and work.”

 

“There is no other place you can work and make a difference for your patients, while at the same time feel like you’re on holiday every day. East Kent is an amazing place to live and work.”