Evening journal., 1901-01-03
PHYSICIANS Arb
TOO NUMEROUS
Evils and Cause of the Over
crowded Medical Pro-
feSSiOn

In common with the other prOfes-
sions, that of medicine is Oyercrowded
This condition is not a new one. but il
is worse than it was and it is contin-
ually growing worse. We doubt
whether it is within the province OF
any man TO point out sure and GER
tain remedy for bad sociologic condi-
tions, but it is within the province of
any of us to note q few OF the factors
that contribute to existing evils and
by avoiding them in the future to les
sen to some extent the evils Of which
We complain.
Medicine invites the allegiance of
many who Imagine that they see in its
practice an easy method OF making
respectable living without going to
much expense in preparation. This
class was especially appealed to by
the formerly existing short courses Of
study with the absolute certainty OF
graduation at the end of two years.
To-day, being shut out of the most
reputable medical colleges. the same
class is taking up the various
branches OF quackery such as Osteopa-
thy. hypnotism, Christian Science and
kindred short cuts to good incomes.
The institutes" of various Kinds
which now advertise instruction in the
various healing" fads make a special
point of dilating upon the certainty of
making a good living by these means
in very short time. 1t is evident that
a good living" for these frauds is a
smaller annual income than is re-
quisite for the reputable physician,
with his necessarily large expenditures
every year for books, instruments and
remedies. The fact that these charla-
tans have come and have come to stay,
should be recognized. We cannot les
sen the evil. no matter how much We
deplore il. Irregular practitioners of
various sorts now mOnOpOlize more
than half Of the medical practice in re-
gard to minor illnesses-the kind that
would eventually get well without
treatment or in spite of it-and which
formerly contributed a very respect
able annual sum to the average doc
tors income. The genuine medical
profession does as much work as ever
in serious diseases, but gets less pay
for it.
It may thus be seen that even with
out an annual influx of new men there
is less work to-day for the average doc
tor than there was twenty years ago.
Preventive medicine is still further
lossening the amount of routine work
for the general practitioner. Typhoid
fever was formerly the standby for
steady income in many communities.
-Four or five cases of that disease con-
tinually on hand made a very fair bulk
of the general practitioners outside
work The prevalence Of this illness is
constantly decreasing; some day it viii
be practically eradicated. SO IL is with
diphtheria; so it is in some parts Of
the country with malarial diseases. Al
truistic medicine is lessening its own
work and diminishing its own income.
With these and Kindred facts in
mind, is there not some legitimate way
to lessen the number of doctors who
have to do the work? Should not every
physician and especially every college
professor do his best TO keep the in
competent, the ne'er-dO-wells and GER
tain failures from entering our ranksl
No young man should be encouraged
to take up the study Of medicine unless
he possesse natural qualifications of an
exceptionally high order. Good DRUG
clerks, good BARRIERS, good carpenters
and good school teachers should not be
urged to abandon occupations fol
which they are suited, and in which
they make prbably as fair an income as
they will make In medicine for at least
ten years. Every professor in some
college feels that It is duty to secure al
least one student each year for the
class, sometimes he goes into the high
ways and byways and compels them K
come in. Only too often the recruits
thus obtained are neither desirable
from the the standpoint of intelligence
nor pleasant associates from the stand
point Of personal character.
We plead for more care in the selec
ton of medical students; we plead 70
less enthusiasm in urging young mel
TO take up the study of science fo
whose practice their personal qualiflca
tions do not fit them; we plead for ;
less crowded profession by raising tn
standard of admission into that prOfes
sion Philadelphia Medical Journal.