University of Maryland School of Medicine - Terrae Mariae Medicus (Baltimore, MD)

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In Memoriam . . . Maurice Charles Pincoffs, M. D. 1886-1960

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In Dedication .. . As Osier once said, A hospital is not a hospital if it doesn ' t have medical students . By the same token a medical school is not a medical school if it doesn ' t have a faculty. Obviously, the comparison is not complete; whereas the former statement must be interpreted figuratively, the latter one holds absolutely. As a child em- pirically reflects his parents, so also do we, the student body, hopefully reflect you, the faculty. Four years under your tutelage seem to have passed all too quickly — however, not without profit. Our medical initiation saw us begin almost completely ignorant of medicine and the things c losely about us now. Aggressive and forceful means were necessary to even begin to ply us into shape for recognition on a pro- fessional level. Brief as our contact has been, the necessity of that goes without saying. Use all of the meta- phors — avenues, vistas, horizons — you have led us to, opened up, and made us aware of many of them. Not only have you led us in positive directions but advised discriminately concerning pitfalls others had to dis- cover and negotiate for themselves. It has been said that the only thing that is constant is change itself. Both by inference and direct reference, you have pressed upon us that all important principle from the very beginning of our apprenticeship. In order that we even begin to measure up to this principle, you have had to point out to us the fallacy of a congealed mind and static thinking. More than to lay bare cert.iin facts before us, your function has been to bestow an attitude toward modern medicine. Your ideas are our concepts of medicine today. Ostensibly, students exhibit a desire to learn. Paradoxically, however, they are endowed with the protean quality of human inertia. We are no different. Esthetic motivation by itself generally is not sufficient to over- come that inertia, but combined with a persistent driving force they act together in relentless fashion to propel and to give vector to an otherwise unknowing group. To build up a force to overcome the inertia required a prodigious amount of energy. But the manner in which the overcoming force was applied represents a superior finesse. We have all assembled and met for so short a while — these past four years. You have passed on something intangible yet something with which all of us will be able to make our mark if it is used judiciously. Granted, you have attempted to instill in us an attitude toward medicine, as should be the case in all medical schools, but just as important as the attitude is the stamp of Maryland which you have blended in. May our association be both mutually gratifying and advantageous. Therefore, it is not only an honor but a pleasure for the graduating class of 1961 to dedicate the current issue of TERRAE MARIAE MEDICUS to you, the faculty.

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Dr. Maurice C. Pincoffs, through his long and distinguished career in Medicine, brought honor to the School of Medicine, to the citizens of Maryland and to this Nation. Seldom is there an opportunity for a University to recognize one who was so dedicated and deserving. During the years 1922 to 1954, Doctor Pincoffs headed the Department of Medicine of the Medical School of this University at a time when the country was witnessing extensive scientific development and unprece- dented discoveries. As an inspiring teacher, he imparted a sense of responsibility, and meticulous attention for thoroughness to those many students and physicians who were privileged to study under him. Doctor Pin- coffs always practiced and taught the principles of comprehensive medicine, emphasizing the ecology of disease. It was his basic tenet to place the patient ' s problem foremost before all other considerations. During his long tenure, Doctor Pincoffs directed the curriculum within a busy department and in later years organized a new Department of Preventive Medicine and Rehabilitation. He was the gifted author of many significant medical publications dealing with the natural history of disease and with the physiologic phenomena related to the adrenal gland and hypertension, functional and structural abnormalities of the heart, disorders of the nervous system and specific treatment of acute infectious diseases. Doctor Pincoffs made outstanding contributions during each of the Great World Wars. Awards for dis- tinguished service and indomitable courage were given him because of personal participation in the evacuation of wounded from the battlefields in France in 1917 and for the high morale which he maintained among sub- ordinates. During World War II, in spite of increasing years, he held posts of high responsibility in the Pacific Theater, initially as the Commanding Officer of the 42nd General Hospital, and later as Chief of Preventive Medicine for the Commanding General. Contributions to our Nation ' s health continued through his counsel- ing as a senior consultant to the Armed Forces and Public Health Service. Health problems in Maryland re- ceived his tireless attention. As a senior consultant to the Health Departments of Maryland and Baltimore, he contributed mature advice and assisted in community health matters with infinite care and vision. Doctor Pin- coffs, as Chairman of the Committee on Medical Care of the Maryland State Planning Commission, fostered a program which is a pioneer project of its kind in the United States. As a respected member of numerous medical societies, he was elected to the presidencies of the Maryland Medical and Chirurgical Faculty, the American Clinical and Climatological Association and the American College of Physicians, posts attained by few. Under his leadership as editor-in-chief beginning in 19. 3, the Annals of Internal Medicine became one of the leading medical periodicals in the world. The University will remember Maurice C. Pincoffs as one of Maryland ' s foremost medical teachers, practi- tioners, counselors and medical administrators whose mind and labors shaped and were shaped by an era of almost ceaseless medical progress.