Dr Hofmann is Retiring

It is with regret that Dr Hofmann has announced that he will be retiring at the end of March.

He has worked at Town Medical Centre for 25 years and is an integral part of the surgery. It will not be the same without his humour. But it is now time for him to put his feet up and relax a little.

Dr Lucie Le Rolland will be joining the surgery in April and will take over Dr Hofmann’s patient list. Dr Le Rolland will work on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. 

We will also have another new GP, Dr Emeke Utulu who will also be joining the surgery in April.

We look forward to working with both Dr Le Rolland and Dr Utulu.

Statement from Dr Hofmann

Don’t panic, don’t panic Captain Manwaring! No - no need Jones. The Germans are not coming - the Germans are actually going. J

My dear Patients,

After 24 years at TMC I have finally decided to retire.  It has been a totally awesome journey together with you our patients and all my previous and current Colleagues.  I have always said, how lucky I am with my flock thatI was entrusted with to look after.  Not in my wildest dreams did I expect such a lovely time ahead when I walked through the famous yellow door downstairs on a grey and cold day in February 2001.

Many of you have not only been my patients but become friends too. Thank you for all the cool chats, the encouragement and support when I had a bad day or simply tried to fix problems for TMC. Thank you for all those lovely thank you cards and pressies. Great Sennockians, great location, great old building full of history.

But it didn’t start without problems either, as some of my then patients told me later. When the rumour of a German Doctor starting turned out to be true the name Hofmann caused careful scepticism in Sevenoaks. Once that shock was done with, the focus turned on my “sharp dress sense”J! Soon I was the Doctor who not only refused to wear ties or suits, but who turned up in Leather Jacket, Combats and Superstars. Colleagues followed and stopped wearing tweeds and ties as well. Cool TMC was bornJ! And I still maintain to that day that it was my „distinct“ dress sense that increased patient numbers very quickly! J

I think in those early days l was a little bit seen as a rare species. A Doctor with an egalitarian approach, whose favourite words were cool, innit, oright like, equally fluent in cockney and Welsh accents. And after a few months - not to mention a few very painful knocks of my head on these low door frames and sealing -I became a true TMC Doctor. 

I was always a Doctor with heart and soul and I have tried to be the best Doctor I could be. But our lovely TMC became more than that, it was like an ongoing project, an idea put to life where we tried our best to respond to need and practice humanitarianism,where we would be there for everyone and give of ourselves with empathy. I always saw this as a great and humbling privilege. And in doing so keep the great idea of the NHS going.

Just a couple of special thank you for people that helped me and us in the past. Firstly Margaret Robinson, our Practice Manager when I started who stayed friends with me and the Surgery after leaving in 2008, but was crucial in coming back temporarily to help us out in the Management Department when we had staffing problems. 

Secondly Alvin Chantler, who was the Surveyor of Paydens, our Landlord, who helped us plan and execute a deep refurbishment and renovation in 2015. Meticulous planning and close working relationships helped us through this 6 months job without a single Clinic cancelled. 

Thirdly Dr Philip Razzell and Dr Andrea Taylor, my then more senior Colleagues, who let me plan and execute new ideas when I first started. Dr Taylor even doing locums for us to this day.

And to our current Team with all you “special TMC people”, led by our current great Practice Manager Jacqui Prenczek. 

And lastly all you great Patients of Sevenoaks, thank you for being the cool people that you are.

Finally, a lot of people said to me, “the Surgery won’t be the same without you”. And I say to them, you are absolutely right, it won’t be. It will be even better under Dr Hela, who is well known to you - an excellent Doctor, a great person and a cool Leader.

For all of you, may your journey and path ahead be full of sunshine, love and happiness. As you know I live in Platt, so will probably bump into you in our lovely Sevenoaks.

Until then, all the very best,

Yours old Doc
Olaf

Published: Feb 12, 2025