The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-06-13
INFERIOR DOCTORS
FLOOD COUNTRY
This Is the Opinion of PreSi-
dent of Carnegie
Foundation.

New York. June 12.-Thst there has
been for a QUAKER OF a century an
enormous over-production of ILL
trained doctors in this country: that
the over-supply of badly trained men
is due to the existence of independent
or proprietary schools, commercially
managed and dependent on fees for
support; and that the instruction fur
nished by most of the medical schools
Of the country is of cheap quality are
some of the conclusions that DIR. Hen
~ ). Pritchett president Of the Car
negie Foundation for the Advance
ment Of Teaching, formerly of Mis-
souri,, and graduate of NJ. u, 1894,
thinks are warranted from the report
on medical education in this country
and Canada, made to the foundation
by Abraham Flexner. a brother Of DIR.
Simon Flexner, director Of the Rookie
Teller institute for medical research.
The report of Mr.. Flexner, who is
an educational expert and has become
a teacher. has been made public by
the Carnegie foundation. for which
Mr.. Flexner personally Investigated
the 155 medical schools OF the coun-
try.
Mr.. Flexner finds that the country
is supporting three or four times as
many doctors as il requires and that
I
most Of them have been trained In in
ferior schools. The medical schools
are still producing. he asserts, two or
three times as many doctors as can be
assimilated.
Many Schools WOefully Lacking.
He does not spare institutions.
mentioning many by name. and asserts
that four-fifths of the schools could
/ be wiped out and that the remaining
I firth r.rar,ar1rr crrv,FagrfaH rnaf1H
duce all the physicians needed in the
country. and better trained ones.
He finds that many Of the schools
do not furnish even a common school
education.
/ He finds that throughout the coun-
htry low-grade schools exist only By
misrepresenting their standards. out
Of 155 schools only about thirty were
3 found 20 have the necessary labOratO-
ries which all claim TO possess: fewer
than thirty enjoy adequate hospital ia
cilities.
Schools are found. he says. whose
graduates go out without any practical
/ knowledge of disease or obstetrics. He
declares there is a mismanagement on
| the financial side also.
Student fees are not generally used
for the development Of the schools.
Though almost 100000 is paid
annually I'm medical students fees" he
/ says, the outlay in most medical
schools is Insignificant. Prosperous
practitioners In large cities continue to
pay themselves the fees that ought to
be used to build up laboratories.
Few Can Hope to Survive.
"In the great private hospitals" the
| writer says. personal considerations
nominate the staff and the school sub
sequently negotiates with the ap-
appointees
Doubtless IL Columbia. New York
university and Cornell had at this mo-
ment n free hand they would retain
some Of their clinical teachers in their
/ present positions But at the bottom
this is a fortunate accident rather than
a natural result. IT just happens hat
some competent teachers find them
selves I'm prominent hospital positions;
but the system is not designed to pick
them out"
OF the eleven schools in the state Of
New York. only the university depart
ments can expect TO survive IL Il he
required that thew contribute to The
medical science Mr.. FleNner thinks.
THE schools Of Buffalo. Albany and
BROOKLYN" he asserts. belong to che
past None Of the three has even vet
entirely emerged from the fee-dividing
stage.
"Of the New York schools. Columbia
and Cornell alone have at this moment
anv financial strength.
New York university is much less
secure Its maintenance AZ its present
level is conditioned on adherence TO a
lower admission standard than Is
scientifically iustifiable. or education
lallv necessary"
New England. Mr.. FleVner finds. is
overcrowded with doctors The hest
thing to be done there. he thinks. IS 20
leave medical education in the hands
Of Yale ana Harvard.
"A thoroughly wretched institution
like the COLLEGE, Of PHYSICIANS and Sur
geons Of Boston" he saws would he
at once wined out IL the law prescribed
| n thorough knowlndge OF rhvsics
chen1istrv and physiology ne the mini
mum hosts 81 rredic7l oducation."
Chicago the writer calls "the niague
snot ~ tho country" with racnect n
medical education. The stato law Gets
a blob stnrdnrd hut 81 Is 10 crantIv
. ~iolafed witch the induhit7ble cor
nfvaD~n - fr-a efato hoa~7 "