Great article from The Daily Record:
A consultant cardiologist from Coltness is leading the way in preventing heart disease in the UK.
Dr Scott Murray, 43, who has been based in Merseyside for 20 years, is a shining example of how sticking in at school can help you achieve your goals.
When Scott was just five years old, his grandfather “keeled over” and died of a heart attack. He didn’t realise at the time that it would be a major influence on his life and eventual career.
A former pupil of Lammermoor Primary and Coltness High, he specialises in Interventional Cardiology and prevention strategies for heart disease.
He has given keynote lectures at the Royal College of General Practitioners and Physicians in London, and is a former president of British Association for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation.
His medical expertise and narration skills were also borrowed by documentary makers of Fixing Dad which screened on BBC.
It’s a long way from his P1 report card from Lammermoor, in which his teacher labelled him a “hard working child” who on occasion “prefers to chat to his friends”.
Reflecting back on his time at high school, Scott believes his application to his studies “kicked in when it mattered”.
“I did make a real effort when it came to exam preparation,” he admits. “I was lucky. My mum and dad didn’t really push me. I just thought this matters.”
They may not have pushed him into medicine, but parents Tom and Grace did ensure that he was aware of the importance of his education.
“My parents probably used reverse psychology, said Scott. “Mum often pointed out to me she hadn’t stuck in at school and ended up working in factories.” Dad Tom, who worked for Anderson Boyes for 34 years, did have an aptitude for numbers when he was younger, his mum – Scott’s gran, found the money to send him to night school, but she soon realised things weren’t quite adding up.
“My gran siphoned some money off so he could do accounting back in the early 60s but he used it to go to a snooker club,” Scott revealed. “He used to tell me that story and say, ‘Don’t do what I did’”.
After successfully getting the grades he needed in his Highers, Scott stayed on at Coltness High to do sixth year studies in chemistry, and showed dedication by taking on a crash course Higher in physics which he needed to get into medical school.
He continued: “The teachers at Coltness really helped me. I hadn’t done a Standard Grade but they said I could probably crash the Higher in one year.
“I sat in Standard and Higher classes during sixth year and got a B in the Higher, that was enough to get me into medical school. There were four of us in the space of three years went from Coltness to medical school.”
From the age of 15 until he finished university Scott also worked in Lloyds pharmacy in Wishaw Main Street.
While studying at Glasgow University he completed a project on why athletes die of heart conditions.
After graduating with a First Class Honours BSc in Sports and Exercise Medicine he spent six months at Hairmyres and then Stirling.
He then moved to Liverpool for a specialised cardiology training programme, and is now settled in the Wirral where he lives with wife Sylvia, a consultant microbiologist, and their three sons aged 10, eight and three.
All the hard work Scott put in studying clearly paid off and as a consultant he gets most satisfaction from connecting with patients, speaking plainly to people without jargon and them “getting it”, and looking after themselves better.
His work now is very different to the years when he spent on intervention, fitting patients with stents to unblock arteries.
He recalled: “I thought at that time, ‘We’re not making much difference here, pulling people out the river when they’re drowning’”.
Scott is set to launch Venturi this year, a specialist cardiology company.
Parents Tom and Grace, who still live in Hazeldean Crescent in Wishaw where Scott grew up, take great pride in his achievements.
Tom said: “He’s done very well since his school days. He’s did it all off his own back.
“He was a goalkeeper and did have a trial for Scotland schoolboys but when other people were out playing football he was in his room studying.”
Grace added: “He’s a hard working laddie, we are very, very proud of him.”
