David James Cull FRCS(Ed) FRACS
Neurosurgeon
25 December 1941 – 18 September 2018
David Cull was born in Sydney and graduated in Medicine from the University of Sydney in 1965. He was a resident medical officer at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 1966 and 1967. It was in the latter year that he had his first exposure to neurosurgery with John Segelov, Richard Gye and Geoffrey Vanderfield. Prof Gye was to be a great supporter of him in later years.
He worked in general surgery in Mount Isa in 1968 and then travelled to the UK where he obtained his Edinburgh Fellowship in 1971, having worked in London and Sussex. He also spent two rotations of 6 months in Papua New Guinea where he contracted hepatitis, enforcing his return to Australia.
In 1972 and 1973 he started neurosurgical training at the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford with his mentor Prof Richard Gye who had moved from Sydney to take up the senior position in Oxford. A relapse of hepatitis required him to take 12 months off to recover before completing his training in Cork, Ireland, a rotation arranged by Prof Gye. He returned to Australia in 1975 to work as Senior Registrar in Neurosurgery in Hobart with Mr Graeme Duffy. He obtained his FRACS in neurosurgery in 1976.
Most of his professional consultant life was spent at the Gold Coast, working both in public hospital work and private practice. In 2002 he retired from neurosurgery because of health reasons and did what many surgeons might wish to do – to grow grapes in Stanthorpe, Queensland. In 2008 another change saw him move to Cygnet, Tasmania to work as an artist where he died in 2018. It is often not realised that David had interests outside of surgery. He was a supporter of the local community of Cygnet and also a supporter of Iranian refugees. He was survived by his children Jonathan, Joanna and Tamsin.
Compiled from public records by Glenn McCulloch FRACS
He worked in general surgery in Mount Isa in 1968 and then travelled to the UK where he obtained his Edinburgh Fellowship in 1971, having worked in London and Sussex. He also spent two rotations of 6 months in Papua New Guinea where he contracted hepatitis, enforcing his return to Australia.
In 1972 and 1973 he started neurosurgical training at the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford with his mentor Prof Richard Gye who had moved from Sydney to take up the senior position in Oxford. A relapse of hepatitis required him to take 12 months off to recover before completing his training in Cork, Ireland, a rotation arranged by Prof Gye. He returned to Australia in 1975 to work as Senior Registrar in Neurosurgery in Hobart with Mr Graeme Duffy. He obtained his FRACS in neurosurgery in 1976.
Most of his professional consultant life was spent at the Gold Coast, working both in public hospital work and private practice. In 2002 he retired from neurosurgery because of health reasons and did what many surgeons might wish to do – to grow grapes in Stanthorpe, Queensland. In 2008 another change saw him move to Cygnet, Tasmania to work as an artist where he died in 2018. It is often not realised that David had interests outside of surgery. He was a supporter of the local community of Cygnet and also a supporter of Iranian refugees. He was survived by his children Jonathan, Joanna and Tamsin.
Compiled from public records by Glenn McCulloch FRACS