The state herald., 1907-09-20
MEDICAL FAILURES.
An Authority Says Three-Fourths Of
Graduates Are Unified to Practice.

the communities in which they set
tie was stated by DR.. Chester Mayer,
of the State Board of Medical Exam
fners of Kentucky at meeting Of the
American Medical Associations Com
mittee on Medical Education, held in
Chicago not long ago. DR.. Mayer said
that only % to 2S per cent OF the
graduates are qualified. Fifty-eight
per cent of the graduates examined in
% states were refused licenses. With
few exceptions these failures took
second examination in few weeks
and only so per cent of them passed.
This does not mean that deficien-
cies in their training were corrected
in those few weeks" DIR. Mayer said.
1T probably shows that experience
showed them what the test would
probably be and they 'crammed for
the examination. DR.. w. T. Gott,
Secretary of the Indiana Board said:
THE majority of our schools now
teach their students how to pass ex-
aminations, not how to be good ply
sicians."
At the session of the American
Medical Association held In Atlantic
City in June, DIR. NJ. Clayton Thrush.
a professor in the Medico Chirurgical
College in Philadelphia said: Many
doctors turned out of the Medical
pertaining to pharmacy that they
know nothing about the properties
OF the drugs they prescribe for their
patients." DIR. Henry Beats. Jr.. Pres
ident of the Pennsylvania State Board
of Medical Examiners, after scrutiniz.
ing the papers OF a class OF candi-
dates for llcensure said: About one
quarter of the papers show degree
OF illiteracy that renders the candi.
dates for licensure incapable OF un-
derstanding medicine"
A great many more physicians and
chemists might be quoted in support
OF the astounding charge that 5000 in
competents are being dumped onto
an unsuspecting public each year.
What the damage done amounts TO
can never be estimated for these In.
competents enjoy the privilege Of di.
agnosing. prescribing or dispensing
drugs regarding the properties of
which they know nothing and then
not passed upon by anyone unless the
coroner Is called In. Probably there
is not grave yard from one end OF
the country to the other that does not
contain the buried evidences OF the
mistakes or criminal carelessness OF
incompetent physicians.
During the last year there have
been perhaps. half dozen known
cases where surgeons, after perform.
ing operations have sewed up the In.
cisions without first removing the
gauze sponges used to absorb the
blood. and In some cases forceps and
even surgeons scissors have been
left in the wound. How many OF
these cases there have been. where
the patient died. there is no means
OF knowing and comparatively few
OF tho cases where the discovery Is
made In time TO save life become gen.
orally public. Reports from Santa.
RUINS for the treatment OF the Drug
Habit show that members of the medi.
cal profession are more often treated
In these institutions than members
OF any other profession. and that n
majority OF the patients. excluding the
physicians themselves. can trace
their downfall directly 10 careless
physician.
How many criminal operations are
performed by physicians Ia also n
matter OF conjecture, Operations OF
this class are. unfortunately. very
freauon, In large cities. Some gradu.
atcd and licensed physicians, many
OF them OF supposed roSpoc,abillty.
make an exclusive practice OF Grim.
inai medical and surgical treatment.
DIR. Henry q. W. Rhcinhart, coronor'a
physician OF Chicago. estimates tho
number OF criminal operations. annu.
ALLY. In Chicago alone at $4,000. How
many resulted fatally are unknown.
as when death results. the real cause
In disguised In tho death certificate
which tho physician signs. and which
no ono but himself and clerk sees
Probably not one case OF malprae
uec In 1000 ever becomes tho subjcc,
OF law suit but In the las, year np
prosimatoly ibo cases wherein tho
plaintiff has alleged malpractice have
been reported In tho newspapers. and
owing TO tho social prominence and
tho favored positions Of many physi
clans not more than half the nov
suits stated. probably. result In nm,
newspaper publicity. but II would
probably not bo an csaggcration ,t
state that the total caHea Of malpfac
uce. not Involving criminal operation,
or criminal medical practice. woult
amount 10 10000 or more than one
case 10 each physician In tho country
This estimate In. Of course. more ol
loss conjecture. untimely deaths ant
permanent disabilities are frequent
and occur within the knowledge OF al