In the final week in which I still worked at the hospital, when everyone was aware of my imminent departure, several colleagues and other employees from the hospital came by the outpatient clinic to say goodbye in person and to say that they had also experienced the collaboration as very pleasant. That was possible, because I no longer saw patients after 2:30 in the afternoon, so there was time for that. Some brought a present, usually a bottle of wine. Nurse ('brother') Kees had a hard time with my departure and we have seen each other several times after that and are currently (July 2023) having regular conversations by mail correpondence. While writing this I realize that, if I remember correctly, no one or almost no one (I really don't remember) has asked the reason for my early departure. I wonder why that is. I had, of course, told some intimates about the reasons, and perhaps not everyone has been discreet about it. Another more plausible explanation is that the absence of a reception and the lack of explanation in the 'farewell letter' led to the conclusion that I preferred to keep the 'why' to myself and that this was respected.

In the following 2 months I received a large number of letters and cards from people I had informed of my departure. Many of these came from GPs who without exception wrote that they were very sorry that I stopped practising. Patients thanked for the treatments they had received. I received 20 responses from the hospital itself, most from individual staff, including specialists, nurses and secretaries, and some on behalf of the various departments and sections of the organization I had worked with over the years. The other letters and cards were written by friends, other dermatologists, the board of the Dutch Association of Dermatology and Venereology and a health insurance company.

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