The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-08-21
FAMILY DOCTOR
Disappearance OF Old Time Friend
and Philosopher Regretted


The Burlington News, located at
the seat OF the University OF Vermont
medical college is authority for the
statement that In the northeastern
and central part OF the state there
is scarcity Of doctors II also de-
clares that most OF the younger doc.
tors who are graduating from the I'm.
' iyersity are not staying In Vermont
but are seeking larger fields, either
IN the west or In the New England
cites.
The contemporary gives the causes
for this state OF affairs as a combined
lack OF business and the severe win
sers in Vermont. People In the rural
districts, according to The News, do
not call In the country doctor during
Ifhe summer months whe= auto travel
Is easy, but 90 to some larger COM
munity where they can have the ser.
vices Of a man who has established
name for himself along some
special line. This cuts the country
Doctors business down to minimum.
In the winter, however, when the
travelling Is most difficult, the city
doctor refuses to go out into the coun
try and the rural doctor has all the
hardship Of making his calls when
the roads are blocked with snow.
Some doctors have been known to
make their calls on snow shoes when
the roads were impossible because OF
the big drifts. The combination has
sickened the country doctor. accord.
ing to the claim. and the rural field
in Vermont Is considered as anything
but attractive. SO the doctors are
going elsewhere
While this Is condition to be re.
gretted, what is there to do about it?
Doctors are human like the rest OF us
with a large investment in them.
selves, represented by years in edu.
cational institutions with a follow-up
Of hospital service. they have a right
to expect a reasonable return on that
investment If they can not we'll get
II in rural Vermont, they are not only
justified in going elswhere, but are
actually compelled to do so. II the
country people contribute to this state
of affairs by patronizing the city doc.
tors when 1t Is possible to do so, they
can not escape their, share OF the re-
sponsibility.
There has In recent years come a
great change in the physicians pro.
fession. Specializing has been the
slogan. The general practitioner still
exists, but specialization is the rule
even in the smaller cities of our state.
Time was when the family doctor was
something more than a dispenser OF
pills and plasters. He was a guide.
philosopher and friend, He was taken
into family councils and often his In
huence was tremendous in shaping
the destiny OF our family. And happy
it was that his influence was almost
invariably for the good.
The doctor IN those days was per
sonage of power, Of position greater
often than priest or minister He knew
his families in and out. He had seen
youngsters whom he had helped to
usher into the world grow up into
manhood and womanhood become pa
rents in their own name, and still he
4 went on mlnlSleTlnB 10 tHeI menus
until il became almost matter OF IN
stinct on his part to know just what
allied them and just what their bodies
needed in the way or medication.
! II may be inevitable that the doctor
of today cannot fill such place In
his patients families now, although
lit was only few years ago when 1t
Twas possible. 1t may be that with the
advent of the specialist, which has re-
suited in the patient shopping around
so to speak, a greater service to man
kind is being rendered But II so. we
are paying the price for the adyant-
age, for in the relationship between
the doctor and the family under the
old plan there was wnolesomeness
and genuine friendship, that in many
ways was priceless. Many doctor in
small community has gone to his
grave grieved over and lamented with
more sincerity than many potentate
or person of other high position. The
family doctor is an institution that
ought not to PERISH Albans Mes
senger
Eirsf Khovvn lIaA nj Goan