In 2002 Drs. Howard Spiro and Vincent DeLuca conceived the idea of an organization of retired and semi-retired physicians, who would meet for purposes of good fellowship and discussion. They asked me to help organize the group, largely because I knew how to do group e-mail. We recruited a small number of doctors from the New Haven and Hartford areas. We began to meet monthly at Dr. Spiro's townhouse. The format was simple. After a brief period of wine and snacks, one member would lead a discussion on any topic except scientific medicine. There followed a feast of pizza and early adjournment.
The group grew slowly to an average of 30 to 40 members. There was a yearly loss of about one or two members due to death, not unexpected in this age group. Most members came from the Yale orbit, with a few from Hartford and Bridgeport. Average attendance at meetings was between 16 and 20 members. Meetings were held from September through June. The May meeting became a member-spouse function and the June gathering, a wine tasting.
In 2006 the group started sponsoring a yearly writing contest at the Yale and UConn medical schools. The students were asked to submit essays or poems on any topic related to medicine and the humanities. The winners at each school received a cash award, presented their work at the member-spouse function, and had their work published in Connecticut Medicine.
Dr. Spiro passed away in March of 2012. The group voted to keep the organization alive and to seek a new "clubhouse". It was decided to rename the organization "The Howard Spiro Society" and to meet at the new Quinnipiac University Frank Netter School of Medicine in North Haven, CT. The first meeting in the new venue is scheduled for October 8, 2013.
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