Daily Kennebec journal., 1913-12-18
A QUESTION OF MEDICAL ETHICS.
Physician Tells of Strange AdVent@fe
And Moral Problem Presented.

confronted him and of how he inter
preted the ethics of his profession and
acted on it. He told the story after
dinner, when the cigars had been light
cd, some time ago.
Il was reused one night he said
"by a telephone call. An unfamiliar
voice asked me if could attend man
who mad been injured. answered that
I could if the case was urgent; but be-
fore 1 could ask who was calling the
speaker answered:
"sAll right, doctor, I'll call at your
house in ten minutes with a carriage
Almost before l had time to dress
the door bell rang. / unlocked the
door. and man wearing long ulster
a dark hat and pair of colored
glasses entered.
Doctor he said before we start ]
want to make request. This case
as l told you, is urgent. But before we
start must have your assurance that
you will treat this visit as confiden-
tial mission. / can't say any more, ex-
cept to add that you're running no risk
of any kind in helping me. And you
can name your own fee'
There was nothing about the mans
appearance that seemed suspicious. He
was quiet and elf-possessed-the
wasn't a trace of nervousness about
him, and he was well dressed. The re-
quest was somewhat unusual, but,
after all, nearly everything that we
learn professionally is held in the
strictest confidence, without any def
rite understanding 10 that effect, so ]
thought there was no reason for re-
fusing to make the agreement.
q took my hat and we started. The
carriage. / noticed, was closed one.
We got in, the man turned on a small
electric light, and then drew the blinds
over The windows.
Doctor, he said I'm going to ask
you 20 take this trip without knowing
where you're going. I'll assure you its
all right. want you to blindfold your
self before We leave the carriage until
we got inside the house.
We'll, / didn't like the look of this,
but was in and didn't like to back
out. Of course. 1 wasn't at all afraid
for my own safety. BY the time the
carriage stopped l didn't have the least
idea what part of the town we were in;
he had made so many turns. put on
tho blindfold, as my visitor requested
and we went up some steps and into
house. Well, the place struck me as
having a familiar look, and pretty
soon / was almost dead certain that it
was a house | had known years ago
when ! was boy. The house took it
to be wds one that used TO be in de-
cent residential neighborhood, and
we'll * isn't now.
Upstairs | found my patient. He had
been shot twice. Revolver bullets they
We're The wounds weren't dangerous
but they were painful because they had
not been treated earlier.
Il dressed them, told the woman who
vas there what sort of care the patient
ought TO have, and then told them that
I'd have to see the man at least two
or three times more before 1 could an
swer for his safe recovery.
The man with the dark glasses
quietly assented to this, but insisted
that he should bring me at night, as he
lad that time. l agreed.
The next morning the papers told
of robbery in which a householder
had been wounded, after shooting one
of the burglars. who succeeded in es-
caping. All the facts of the case in
dicated that my patient of the night be-
fore was the burglar who had been
shot. felt sure l could locate the
house The householder recovered
quickly.
"The question stared at me; Did the
ethics of the medical profession allow
me to go to the police and tell them
what knew, or did my promise bind
me to secrecy? 1 thought it over all
day and finally decided that l had no
right to say anything about the mat
ter | made three more trips in the
same manner and finally decided that
the man would get along without any
more calls. All this time l watched the
papers, but no trace was found of the
burglars. When l made my last visit
I told the man who had first called me
that my fee would be $50 He took
from a large roll some bills and hand
ed them to me without word. He
drove me home and that was the last
1 ever saw of either of them.
That was a good many years ago.
but I've often wondered whether 1 did
right in not violating that mans con-
fidenee."
Il don't think you did said a mem
Der of the group. The medical profess
sion has no right to shield a criminal.
Women and children should be given
the greatest protection we can give
them the same as a vessel at sea-but
no word given criminal is binding"
But suppose it had turned out that
the man was not the burglar in ques-
ton? ! believe he was, but it might
have been otherwise"
That's true" said third 1T was
all right to keep your promise so long
as you had no actual knowledge that
the man was a criminal. Where You
made your mistake was in making
such a ridiculous agreement in the first
place"
And let a man, dangerously injured,
suffer-" asked the first speaker. Re
member, when l first agreed TO secre-
cy the case had no particularly sus-
picious appearance. I could cite doz-
en- different circumstances in which
serious accident might happen and
which the persons connected with
-