Tag: Summer 2017
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Antonio Scarpa, anatomist (1752–1832)
Students graduating from a university not uncommonly leave and seek employment elsewhere, but by the excellence of their work attain great fame and as such repay their alma mater for their early education. This was the case of Antonio Scarpa. Entering the University of Padua at age fifteen, he studied under the famous Battista Morgagni…
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Manga as medical critique
Adil MenonCleveland, Ohio, United States Stark lines are often drawn in American and European literature between graphic novels, which cater primarily to adults, and comics, which despite their broad appeal are perceived as being meant for younger audiences. No such dichotomy exists within the Japanese medium of manga, an expansive art form with works catering…
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Doctor bites policeman in Chicago religious dispute
The episode took place in Chicago about half a century ago. At the time some 100,000 Ukrainians lived in the greater Chicago area, mostly in a near-west neighborhood referred to as the Ukrainian village. They were mostly (c.70%) Catholics of the Byzantine or Eastern rite, adhering to the old Julian calendar and celebrating Christmas and…
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Anatomical fugitive sheets revived: medical history as a stimulant for active learning and reflection
Goran Štrkalj and William HuntSydney, Australia Anatomy has traditionally been one of the foundation disciplines within the medical curricula.1 At the same time, it has been one of the most challenging subjects, both intellectually and emotionally. It also has a complex and controversial history burdened with occasional cultural and ethical transgression, particularly in the way…
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Life of a blanket in the medical center
Fredna DeCarloMissouri City, Texas, United States I am fresh and new, without the scent of laundry detergent yet, waiting on the shelf to begin my life as a blanket in the Medical Center. Here we go! I feel hands that are smooth, their owner is in a hurry, but suddenly she slows, her mannerisms change,…
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Katherine Anne Porter and the 1918 influenza epidemic
Cristóbal S. Berry-CabánFort Bragg, North Carolina, United States In Pale Horse, Pale Rider, Katherine Anne Porter weaves the horrors of the Great War, the 1918 influenza pandemic, and the near-death experience of a young woman in love with a doomed American soldier into a memorable novella.1 Porter was born on May 15, 1890, in the…
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Classicism and Sir Charles Bell’s Engravings of the Nerves
Allister NeherMontreal, Quebec, Canada Readers of medical humanities journals have become accustomed to seeing articles on anatomical illustration and its indebtedness to the techniques and conventions of the fine arts. As diverse as connections between these two areas can be, they are often more complicated than we might expect, especially when we examine the circumstances…
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Defining dead
Arya ShahRochester, MN, USA The checklist of death was foreign to mewhen I first ran down its list.It’s hard to describe that encounter with death,but let’s see if I can convey the gist. It started on a bright summer morning.A boy woke up for a day of fun.He planned to go on a hike with…
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Is Daddy a good doctor?
Gregory W RuteckiCleveland, Ohio George Lundberg posed an intriguing question for a generation of physicians: why don’t more doctors go to the funerals or calling hours of their patients?1 In fact, he boldly predicted that the only funeral you can be sure your physician will attend will be that of his own.1 I attended several of patients’…