SUNY Downstate Medical Center - Iatros Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

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4.1 451-3535. L :HQ -yvl41. fI -,, liar ci, 1 f. ...Z 1 .. cr., . Q . .,, .Y . ,..,, , ,..Y..s of V :ax .lilfyy-.-.in .Y -,lg-L-g T? -:B-5:1-X-1. fi ,.:,::g:a.-.!f is mas- J-2 - 1--iifag Y- ---2221?--f ' JN. 1 , ,-'E- alfa-. .Q 1.14-,2LL:f:i' 'H 7. 111- IE.-,.1 x if' 1 , ----J-------------------H -v -- ---mf.-, .v ,.1f,1 - ,4,.,. --.M . . .,... ,,.......,....Y,--...-,, ' L, -,-i. -' 1' N -'rf' I- , tg' The Unit of Medical Service FRANK L. BABBOTT, JR. President, Long Island College of Medicine N one of his masterfully simple and stimulating sermons Dr. Harry Emerson Fos- dick referred to a man who possessed a marvelous watch. Not only would it tell the hour of the day, but thanks to its delicate machinery it would record the day of the week, the day of the month and the phases of the moon. its ability to succeed in such vast matters, however, depended entirely on how faithfully and accurately it told off the seconds of each minute. That was its unit of service. When it failed there, all else became awry. Society has in its hands a similarly intricate and complicated watch- the medi- cal profession. It points with just pride to its far-flung and wide-open hospitals, to its huge centers or clinics, to its industrial health services, to its naftion-and even world-Wide health movements. It shouts about the numbers of cases treated. Yet only insofar as its minimum unit of service is properly and wholly rendered can any of the vast agencies be counted on to do their real part. This unit is the coni- plete man, woman or child. If this well man, as an entity can be kept well, if this suffering woman can be eased l.hrough her mental and spiritual, as well as her physical, travail, if this twisted little child can be entirely rectified-then, and then only, can society say Wfhis watch of mine is worthy of the trust I place upon it. Is it not possible, that one of the contributing causes 'to the growing dissatisfac- tion which is current both within and without the profession is this failure to con- sider the individual? Let us grant that there are many other elements which are of importance but for the purpose of this occasion we shall limit our consideration to this alone. One of the reasons Wh the individualis needs have been lost sight of is sur- . . . V . . . D 2 prismg as it may seem, the rapid advance of medical science. It has outstrlpped the Jhiloso h of healin . More fundamental knowleclee of the reaction of biolo- . 1. P Y g . U . . . gic tissue to normal or altered environment has been made available, then it 1S possible for most physicians to grasp. The sciences of Chemistry, of Physics and of lVlathematics have opened up so many vistas of alluring application to medical practice that Doctors have become confused and have sought a way out of their difficulties by following one line of interest-seeking to perfect themselves in it to the exclusion of all else. This sci- entihc specialization has very naturally led many of the profession so far afield from the patient as a Whole, that they find themselves no longer uspecialistsl'-for that implies a general background against which one division of medicine stands out with especial interest-but rather, to use the word coined by our good friend, Dr. John Jennings, they have become partialists.w ' Let us not decry specialization-far from it. The more perverted the normal functions of the body become, the more necessary is the light of scientific special- izedknowledge. Surgical procedures, requiring the utmost nicety of judgment and skill can only be undertaken by one whose experience in such matters is ex- tensive and whose scientific training has fitted him for them. God forbid that we 10 J, 1-2-T:.Jt -W1 fl rr ...H-t.,.,.,5.,...,,.s,,..qg,...s..,.-...c-+s,,...,..,-.,....,,.,, 41, M--5 f,,,,v,,,- i,,..w :ed Z, ,- -.-.,..-.bca -.a-1-s- ' 'il i Y Q----.. , , --.a,. ,-L.,..-.-..-.....,,.., . 9 V Q ,. W ,, - ---t - . A,,m1..-my,.: TW... im. MY -----.N-.---.1-,---- -.-.F , .i -1 ,----,--f----------- -- --- --A J---- --f-'i--H . 5. lf ., 3 Ar . sg. ' it f 4

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THE CLASS OF 1932 DEDICATES THIS VOLUME OF LICHONIAN TO DR. FRANK L. BABBOTT, JR., PRESIDENT OF THE LONG ISLAND COLLEGE OF MEDICINE A childrenfs doctor, he has cared for us dur- ing our medical infancy with kindness, sym- pathy anrl understanding. He has left hope where despair held sway, he has cheered us in our trials and listened to our woes with an ever-friendly ear. He has brought to a severe scientific course in medicine, a wholesome idealism. For this we thank him. fi-TI-' E: .i I r,,,- 'Nh .4 , -E , : ' , Ii 'i:f. e I WWII, I Q , 'Il I A Il 1- f dlnlw., . Y 1,AJ'fL'o-..1:'1,JcL.1cnYf:,-L-,G io-U I

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Mes, , '.-H A - ' lf- f , , , ,, , , , , 3 fFf 'H ,vw 575 7'f 'T' dm 7 A, ,f ' l,,L'Q':l'7 ' Vik, lr ' i uf T .lf Y, . TYYQW, W Y jf l:f'v ff' W ' TLV LT , ' 7 ,Z 'ffff ,Q A . . W . 7 - X . , K ,A rk.U.JQ-,Ci I as ein! , ,rs-a ., ,-,,s:--,,z,,-- . ,C-17,7 ls'1.f x. . Ill 'l : .:tf'il?'9gi,:'f tif' s 'f should do away with the specialist but let us try to inculcate into him not only scientihc zeal for greater detail of knowledge but also a philosophic outlook which will aid hi1n to relate his particular Work to the rest of the patient's diseased body and also 'to the personality which is simultaneously altered. Such a physician can be called a 'ctotalistf' even though his area of medical practice be restricted or spe- cialized. The outstanding examples of totalism can be found in that fast vanishing race of family doctors whose fame has been sung in many an old story and whose magic touch has healed many a bruised spirit or suffering body in this room. He was not a scientihc biologist. He was a medical philosopher. He knew the heritage of his patients and many of the environmental factors which had a bearing on their pres- ent troubles. Let us grant that his scientific armamentorium was scanty and maybe inadequately usedg that he muddled through major surgery and complicated obstre- trics, with occasional dire results to his patients. Nevertheless, we must face the fact that he played a noble part in human living because of his broad outlook on his patients as individuals whose bodies, minds and spirits needed help. W e are ajlictefl by what we can prove, We are flistraclecl by what we know So, ah so! Down. from your heavens or up from your mold, Send us the hearts of our fathers of old. It is improbable that the old family doctor who assumed entire charge of all of his patients will be with us long. The public whom he served has come 'to de- mand- thanks to the effort of the profession itself, more scientific knowledge than he is able to possess. His place will probably be hlled by men and Women who have inherited some of his qualities of mind and soul in that they are 'ctotalistsn yet who recognize more clearly than did he, their specihc and technical limitations and who will call for specialized help in the handling of their problems. These practitioners of general medicine may continue to travel alone or they may more or less formally associate with themselves, specialists whose medical philosophy is akin to their own. Such a group naturally finds its focus in a hospital, where its internal organization need not be sharply defined. In many communities there already are even more closely knit bodies of physicians, whose offices and practices are managed as a corporate entity. The guiding spirit in either of these types of co-operative effort is the successor of the family doctor, who marshals the facts and guides the patient,s course. The broader the specialist's outlook the closer harmony there is within the unit. The success of these groups, be they small or involved, related primarily to the individualis illness or to the community's Well- being, will depend not only on the scientific skill which is displayed, but upon the individualization of their patients. How can we prepare this type of physician-this doctor whose interest is as much in the man as in the microbe. In the hrst place, great care must be exercised in the selecting of the individual medical student. Not only should there ,be a thorough study of his intellectual attainments, as exemplified in past scholastic endeavor, but also all possible light must be brought to bear on his character and ll i c 'gg , his so --,i..ii s, Turf