Tag: Oxford
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John Arbuthnot: physician, wit, and creator of John Bull
JMS PearceHull, England, United Kingdom In the light of recent British parliamentary chaos, by chance I discovered this irresistible quotation: “All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies”-John Arbuthnot At a time when in most westernized countries physicians and many others are disenchanted by politicians’ self-aggrandizement and expansionist policies, this little aphorism…
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Wilder Penfield
JMS PearceHull, England, United Kingdom Wilder Penfield was not only a great surgeon and a great scientist, he was an even greater human being. -Sir George Pickering, Regius Professor of Medicine at Oxford University Wilder Penfield (1891-1976) (Fig. 1) was the most gifted pioneer of Canadian neurosurgery. He devised effective surgery for controlling intractable epilepsy…
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An emperor unclothed: The virtuous Osler
Patrick FiddesPaul A. KomesaroffMelbourne, Australia Apart from Hippocrates himself, William Osler was among the most praised physicians of all time. Like his Greek forerunner, Osler amassed a huge following of loyal supporters, for whom he could evidently do no wrong. One went so far as to suggest that Osler was: “the greatest physician of all…
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Smallpox inoculation: prelude to vaccination
Art BoylstonHeadington, Oxford, United Kingdom Inoculation for smallpox, now known as variolation, consisted of placing a small amount of fluid from a smallpox pustule into the skin. It was introduced into England and colonial Boston in 1721 following reports from Constantinople that the practice was safe and produced lifelong immunity to smallpox.1 Not surprisingly the…