Category: History Essays
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Medicine and medals in 19th and 20th century France
Ira Rezak Sarah Elizabeth Freeman, in the course of introducing her catalog of medical medals in the collection of the Johns Hopkins University, quotes Warwick Wroth as saying (c 1892) that medals “are the mirrors which the men of the past delighted to hold up to every momentous event, or to every event which seemed…
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Ludwik Fleck, physician in Lwow Ghetto
George M. WeiszSydney, AustraliaAndrzej GrzybowskiPoland Dr. Ludwik Fleck, a pioneer in the early diagnosis of infectious diseases, was born in 1896 in Lwow, then known as Lemberg and until World War I, part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Graduating from Lwow University Medical School, Dr. Fleck became interested in medical research and by 1931 had made…
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High drama in the scullery
George DuneaChicago, IL This dramatic incident must have taken place around 1930, at a time when great controversy raged about the level at which a life-saving tracheotomy should be done. It is an extract from “High Tracheotomy Low Tracheostomy,” a lecture as given by Sir Clive Fitts at the Royal College of Physicians of London…
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The doctor and the baron
George DuneaChicago, Illinois, United States There was a doctor, and there was a baron. The doctor could write, the baron could fly. On a clear day the baron could have flown on the back of an eagle over Italy and Spain to the Carolinas and the White House. There was also a rogue professor. And…
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Dr. Wedekind’s son: A Frank story
Frank WollheimSweden What is in a name, and how does it come to us? This vignette shares the story of the son of a German gynecologist and how his impact influenced two medical students in 1918 Munich, eventually leading to the name of my mother’s first child—also a physician—Frank. German-born American citizen and gynecologist Friedrich…
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The US hospice movement: Redressing modern medicine
Emily BetheaChicago, Illinois, USA Unlike its modern concept, hospice began as “a house of rest and entertainment” not only “for pilgrims, travelers, or strangers” but also “for the destitute or sick.”1 Like the images conjured by these words, the first hospices are believed to have originated in the 11th century when the Crusaders permitted the…
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The anatomist’s violin
Elizabeth A.J. ScottEdinburgh, Scotland “Its tone was pure. The music enchanting.” So read the review of music played on Dr. Robert Knox’s violin for the visit of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons to Edinburgh in 1983. But if the instrument could speak as well as sing, what an amazing tale it would tell. Robert…
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Doctor Moore on 18th century medicine
Einar PermanStockholm, Sweden John Moore (1729-1802) was a Scottish physician, who traveled extensively in Europe and published several books about his travels.1,2 He was also an astute observer of people, customs, and places, and his opinions were often ahead of his time, particularly in matters of contemporary medicine and the medical profession. His book, Medical…
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Samuel Tissot: Patient compliance in the 18th century
Einar PermanStockholm, Sweden Young physicians are told that the doctor should treat the patient, not the disease. This is sound advice, but knowing the patient is often not easy. Even more challenging is the task of having the patient follow medical advice and comply with instructions. I have treated many well-educated patients and have always…
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Doctors like eponymity
Denis GillDublin, Ireland I must confess to liking medical eponyms. As a medical student in 1960s Dublin, we were taught the names of famous Irish physicians of the Georgian period (1780–1840), a time when Dublin was famed for its bedside teaching. Their names evoked an interest in the history of medicine and in clinical signs.…