The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-05-25
AS TO MEDICAL ADVERTISING.

Our esteemed local contemporary, the
Atlantic Medical Weekly approves by
quotation the following observations Of
the Western Medical Review as TO the
much discussed and seemingly perplexing
question OF medical advertising, /. O., the
advertising by doctors:
Society has claim on every man. ,nd b r
the doctor attending 20 his social duties ne
viii probably impress some one with the idea
| that he will be- good Inrsician TO call in
when he becomes ill., by making himself
| agreeable 10 all whom he may meet, without
overriding H. by dressing neatly and being
| cleany 10y driving good horse and buggy,
If he can afford H. by being gentleman at
all times, In all places and undor all crcum-
! stances, these are legitimate and honorable
methods OF advertising It is advertising that
costs nothing but II s advertising that pays.
The conscientious physician, the honorable
physician, the self respecting physician. will
advertise in this way and no other"
The News has never ventured TO enter
the arena of discussion as to the senti-
ment among our friends, the doctors,
against advertising themselves. 1t has
never assumed II 20 be its business to
comment on the unwritten and some
times, we believe, written, law in the pro.
fession of medicine that makes it qu ite
undesirable for "a physician To advertise
himself in the usual way. We have
understood that if he exercised enterprise
in this direction he would stand good
show to be ostracised by his fellows and
that means 30 much TO him that the
possible profits to be realized from adyer-
tising is rarely deemed anything like a
sufficient compensation for loss of profess
sional standing. We have had occasion,
to be sure, 20 believe that none of its
friends the doctors, is ever inclined TO
make strenuous objection TO being men
notable surgical or medical task whereas
we feel that the same doctor would
not care % be advertised as the attendant
physician uDon patient whose name
should appear in the list Of mortuary
notices. But In somewhat extended
newspaper experience and "A large acquain-
tance among the medieos, we have yet TO
receive the first hint at request for
notice of any kind or to hear any express
sion of opinion that notices are at ali de-
sired. The individual members of the
profession are, we believe, as a rule, CON
sistent in practice with the principle of
That feature OF medical ethics, which Cie-
rnands that the professional man shall
refrain from blowing his own horn by
paid for newspaper space or seeking
fame through the medium of the news
| paper reporter
But this suggestion offered the doctors
by the Western Medical Review strikes us
as distinctly odd and very likely too
| frank. We perhaps may believe that the
doctor takes indirect means. social and
otherwise TO boom himself He goes into
"a society to advertise himself. He joins a
club or rides n bicycle for what there
Is in 1t" A member of another pro-
| fession once told us that he found "ioin-
| ing church the best Investment he ever
made" We have thought it possible i'm
deed, though our experience has not dis
| covered doctor Of our acquaintance who
seeks free puifs in the newspaper para
graph, that the Indirect method of adyer-
tsing as suggested above, would not be
contrary to the ethics of tn , medical pro-
fession. II is recognized method IN
business that advertise directly 10y paid
for space and in SO far member of the
profession seem TO have the sanction of
the code to follow approved business
methods Of chasing fame and securing
dollars. But the irankness of the quota
tion above somewhat staggers u.s. The
Review actually recommends such methods
not only as honorable, which, of course,
they are, and legitimate according 60 the
code, but also because they "cost moth
ing. Is that a prime reasonY Are we
to understand that the basis Of the ethical
code as applied to advertising is dead
headismP If II is true that the "coasci-
entious, the honorable" and the
"self-respeoting" 'will advertise in this
way and no other for the reason that 10
"costs nothing" we arc prepared to
affirm that the medical code of ethics
peotod from the oodo that governs the