ctd from before The salary of an Intern was $200,00 a month with board and lodging. Local and federal taxes were deducted from that! When you walked into a hospital you could identify the occupation of most workers. Attending physicians wore a lab coat, Interns and Residents wore white pants and double breasted white coat with banded collar and buttons on the right shoulder. The R.N.s wore a cap representing the school they graduated from and a frock to below the knee. A Practical nurse wore a blouse and skirt. Young girl volunteers called 'candy stripers ' wore candy striped tops. Medical students wore short white coats. Now when you enter a hospital everyone wears a plastic I.D. which is mostly indecipherable ,'surgical scrubs' and a stethoscope around the neck. You can't tell who is what till you are very close. A stethoscope dangling around the neck, hitherto a symbol of being a physician, though seldom used now, is worn by most everyone.
What happened? How did we get there? Are we better off? Is this all a sign of progress? These are complex and complicated questions. There are many answers which differ drastically as do we as human beings. I submit my humble views.
A profession , which medicine claims to be, is just a calling. You can embellish all you want with 'noble', 'great', unique' or anything else but it is still only a profession. Nothing more and nothing less. Or I might add, it was. It is now a trade, no different than any other, not withstanding the lofty oaths of Aesculapius or Hypocrites taken at the time of graduation ,then soon forgotten.
Medicine can be traced back to a few individuals with knowledge and observation who could use it to try to alleviate ill-health. That knowledge earned them respect. This was perpetuated as 'medicine men', 'priest physicians', then physicians, as knowledge increased and civilizations developed. Th rewards for this service was more respect than lucre. There was great personal involvement in the doctor patient relationship as the wise doctor knew that his efforts were of limited effect and gave medicine with great empathy and personal care- the human touch. The doctor became a special person. Acceptance of things such as illness and death as part of life was part of life. So the doctor got the credit when the patient healed and appreciation of his help for trying if the oucome was bad. (to be ctd)
