A doctor who was stabbed on a home visit has quit his 27-year career after ‘losing all compassion’.
Dr Robert Davis, 57, suffered knife injuries to his head, shoulder, arm and thumb and had to spend time in hospital after being attacked.
The dedicated GP has not been back to work since the 2012 incident and will officially retire next month after he was left with “no interest in medicine at all”.
Dr Davis has spent almost his entire career at the same surgery in Tewkesbury, Glos., and held a coffee morning to say goodbye to his patients and colleagues.
He said: “I will be 58 in April and I was planning to go in the next year or so anyway but after that experience I decided I didn’t want to be in a potential situation like that ever again.
“I’m fine in myself. I find coming to Tewkesbury slightly tense but easier than after the event, when I didn’t want to come here at all.
“It has meant I now have no interest in medicine at all. That’s gone.”
The married father-of-two said he had never experienced “a whiff of violence” during his career before the attack in May 2012.
He said he was determined not to let it dominate his life but admitted it had caused him to lose his compassion.
The doctor from Cheltenham, Glos., held a coffee morning to say goodbye to his patients before he retires on April 5.
He said: “I’ve had a great career. I’ve loved it.
“Tewkesbury has a cross-section of people and they’re incredibly loyal.
“I will miss working in a team and the camaraderie among the staff and I will miss the patients as well.
“You’ve got to end your career at some stage. I’ve just ended it slightly earlier than I expected to and slightly more abruptly.”
* Benjamin Pettitt , 31, of no fixed address, has been charged with attempted murder in relation to the assault. He will appear at Gloucester Crown Court next week.
