Spring 2004
ARTICLES Renal colic on an African cliff while searching for smallpox
The power of touch in clinical medicine Physical touch is one of the most effective acts of doctoring. However, as technological advances in medicine continue, the use of touch in medicine is at risk. Physicians need to recognize the diverse and powerful aspects of touch, and medical educators need to develop educational strategies that inform students of its importance in patient care, as well as its appropriate use. Here, literary works and case narratives offer descriptions that emphasize the importance of touch in medicine and its capacity for healing.
An untimely illness: Dr. Osler calls upon a future first lady
A philosophical basis for medical education The philosophical foundations of modern science are insufficient as the basis of a balanced medical curriculum. The meaning and truth value of many statements made by medical teachers and doctors cannot be assessed by empirical standards of verifiability and fasifiability. The time-honored judgment that doctors are both scientists and artists suggests that the traditional "art of medicine" is an essential philosophical component of the medical curriculum. An examination of the program of general learning (humanitas) of our medical predecessors demonstrates that the terms liberal arts and philosophy have meanings that diverge widely from modern thought, yet remain essential components of a doctor's pre-medical education. Traditionally, music has been what in modern thought is called a basic science for medical education. The metaphysical proposition that the world is organized proportionately, and therefore harmoniously, suggested to medical teachers before the modern era that the doctor's role is to cooperate with nature to restore each patient's harmonic mean by corrections of imbalances among bodily and spiritual elements. The philosophical foundation of medical education inherited from the ancient world complements admirably the principles of modern philosophy of science as the twin cornerstones of a general medical education.
Georg Büchner's Woyzeck: A tragic example of human experimentation without informed consent
David H. Solomon, M.D. Commentary
Medicine in art: Looking at "The Doctor" There are many representations of medical themes in art, and a number of portrayals of physicians. Perhaps the most famous of these is "The Doctor," a Victorian painting by Luke Fildes. It hangs in the Tate Gallery, London.
The history of hysteria
PERSPECTIVES "The Doctor"
POETRY Flying to California My Colleague Retires Maryann's Interview Gallstones (Moeraki Boulders) Mario Zacchini, the Human Cannonball The Poets on Parnassus Poetry Competition
Side Trips Flutter |
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