Milton doctor retiring after 52 years of practice

Oct. 3—MILTON — Born and raised in Somerville, N.J., Dr. Barclay Wilson, fresh out of internship moved to Milton, where he bought and established a family practice in 1970.

Fifty-two years later, working out of the same office on South Front Street, Wilson, 80, is planning to retire, he said on Monday. He will officially retire on Oct. 27.

Wilson is an osteopath, a general practitioner, now better known as family medicine.

"We are taught everything an M.D. is taught and we had extra courses in physicals and practice and manipulative therapy," he said.

Wilson remembers with much fondness and clarity what Milton was like in 1970.

"I moved here with my best friend, John Moore, who joined the Daily Item staff at the same time, as a reporter," he said.

Moore and Wilson became friends at school in Somerville at age 7. As they grew older, "I remember that he always wanted to be a doctor," Moore said.

When Moore moved to Sunbury, Wilson followed soon after. He subsequently bought an existing practice in Milton, at the same location as his present practice.

While establishing the practice, he joined the small staff at Evangelical Community Hospital — the first DO (doctor of osteopathy) on their staff. The entire staff at Evangelical numbered 31 people.

Back in the day, Wilson said, "I also did house calls at times, when it was really necessary. But it is much easier to do things in the office than in a home."

Over time he has treated generations of people, as children and then as grown-ups.

"Some I've had since the beginning, as babies," he said.

Milton was a busy community 52 years ago, one of the reasons he moved there to practice. On a Friday night, Wilson said, "Traffic was so heavy you'd have trouble crossing Front Street. There were mens clothing stores, three women's clothing stores, a jewelry store, a hardware store. Just about anything you might need to get, right here."

Changing times

Medical practices have changed, Wilson said. There is less paperwork and more computer work. "But I still have paperwork in my system," he said. "Another change: Now there are so many sub-specialists.

"As far as the office now, a lot more things are available," Wilson said. "Diabetes and hypertension are pretty much under control. When I started here there were no CAT scans, no MRIs, no ultrasound. You did have X-rays."

During COVID he kept his practice going, with everyone using safe practices, wearing masks.

"Between college and med school I did take courses in virology, and I've kept up to studies on infectious diseases every year. Still, I didn't see COVID coming," Wilson said.

He thinks China covered it up and that the virus was around longer than was made public.

"It is amazing how much false information is out there about COVID," he said.

Wilson believes in the value of hands-on examinations, where he can use his in-person experience to help diagnose patients.

"Telemedicine is helpful, but it is not the same as seeing someone and touching them," he said. "I am an osteopath. I touch people. How can I do manipulative therapy on a screen?"

About leaving his practice, Wilson said, "I've been working here for 52 years, and although I feel fine I want to be able to do things.

"I don't have the endurance I had when I was younger. I think of all the things I did when I was younger and the work," he said. "I want to go to a place where I don't have to worry about shoveling the snow and mowing the grass. I'll have more time for reading and relaxing."

Wilson will be moving closer to his daughter in State College. He hopes to attend lectures and concerts and there are restaurants to patronize.

There is much Wilson will miss.

"I will miss contact with the patients and working with them to get their conditions settled, under control," he said.

"That is why I wanted to get into medicine," Wilson said. "I wanted to help people. I thought I had the ability to do that. And so I will miss that. But there are other things in life besides work."

Patricia Mosaeiello, Wilson's office manager for 30 years, said, "I'll miss him. But he deserves some time for himself after all the years of hard work."