A black-and-white photo shot at the end of his final night shift in the emergency department speaks volumes. Sitting on a gurney, arms crossed, grinning ear to ear, Dr David Haughton has a face that confidently says, “I did it!”
BC Children’s Hospital emergency physician Dr David A. Haughton took the plunge and dove into painting as of 7:30 a.m. on 29 October 2017. And once he plunged, he wasted no time. He gave way his medical equipment and textbooks, took a few things off the wall, and left the hospital with a box containing just a few items—including his stethoscope in case he needed to check his lood pressure. The next day he canceled his medical licence and CMPA insurance and stopped practising as a physician.
The move wasn’t a surprise. Haughton had been an artist for 40 years and a physician for 32. His plan all along had been to become successful enough as an artist, in parallel to medicine, to eventually become an artist full time