Children’s heart surgeon Tim Cartmill AO was born in Grafton on the NSW north coast in 1933, and raised in the nearby rural community of Nymboida. A bookish child, encouraged by his family and the teacher of his one-room school, he became a boarder at the selective Hurlstone Agricultural High School in Sydney.

Tim entered the University of Sydney Medical School at the age of sixteen. After graduation he served as Resident Medical Officer and Registrar at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital where he developed a lasting interest in chest surgery, especially the newly evolving field of open heart operations.

Having qualified as a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgery, he was privileged to study heart surgery for three years in USA at Houston, Texas and Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, two of the world-leading centres of the time.

Tim returned to Australia with his young family. He joined the staff at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children in Sydney from the mid-1960s until 1997, later participating in the establishment of Westmead Children's Hospital.

His service to paediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery were recognised in 1995 when he received the Order of Australia.

Having retired from active practice in Australia, Tim practised in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates from 1998 to 2001.

Professor Cartmill has helped train generations of Australian and International Heart surgeons and contributed to many overseas philanthropic surgical visits.

Other contributions included administrative, educational and political positions.

Understanding Life Backwards is an autobiography which also reflects on selected technical aspect of surgery, teaching, learning and mentorship, and the roles of colleagues, family and friends in a busy professional life. Finally, this book recounts many satisfactions of life in retirement, and muses on philosophy, retirement and aging.