Judging Medicine's Past: A Lesson in Professionalism
Authors: Barron H. Lerner
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2021)

EditorialsJune 2021Judging Medicine's Past: A Lesson in ProfessionalismBarron H. Lerner, MD, PhDBarron H. Lerner, MD, PhDNew York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New YorkSearch for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M21-0648 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail What should be done about statues of Confederate soldiers and awards honoring such flawed heroes as President Woodrow Wilson and birth control activist Margaret Sanger, both of whom expressed racist thoughts? The topic of historical judgment is ubiquitous these days, and the medical profession has not been spared (1). Most recently, critics have argued that eponyms and other honorifics that commemorate the legendary physician William Osler should be removed because of his apparent support of eugenics in the early 20th century (2).So, how should we best judge historical figures? There is always a tendency to look back from our ...References1. Lerner BH, Caplan AL. Judging the past: how history should inform bioethics. Ann Intern Med. 2016;164:553-7. [PMID: 27089070]. doi:10.7326/M15-2642 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Persaud N, Butts H, Berger P. William Osler: saint in a “White man's dominion”. CMAJ. 2020;192:E1414-6. [PMID: 33168766] doi:10.1503/cmaj.201567 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Halperin EC. “We do not want him because he is a Jew”: the Montreal interns' strike of 1934. Ann Intern Med. 2021;174:852-857. doi:10.7326/M20-7121 LinkGoogle Scholar4. Montgomery Rice V. Diversity in medical schools: a much-needed new beginning. JAMA. 2021;325:23-4. [PMID: 33399846] doi:10.1001/jama.2020.21576 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Campbell KM, Corral I, Infante Linares, et al. Projected estimates of African American medical graduates of closed historically Black medical schools. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3:e2015220. [PMID: 32816033] doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.15220 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Tweedy D. Medical schools have been historically wrong on race. The New York Times. 2 August 2020:SR7. Google Scholar7. Gordon M. Racism, hazing and other abuse taints medical training, students say. NPR. 16 June 2020. Accessed at www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/06/16/876279025/racism-hazing-and-other-abuse-taints-medical-training-students-say on 7 April 2021. Google Scholar8. Morton B. Virginia Woolf? Snob! Richard Wright? Sexist! Dostoyevsky? Anti-Semite! The New York Times. 13 January 2019:BR14. Google Scholar9. Lagay F. Right to choose patients and duty not to neglect. Virtual Mentor. 2001;3. [PMID: 23273154] doi:10.1001/virtualmentor.2001.3.9.code1-0109 CrossrefGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New YorkDisclosures: The author has reported no disclosures of interest. The form can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M21-0648.Corresponding Author: Barron H. Lerner, MD, PhD, Bellevue Hospital Center, Desk 2D, 462 First Avenue, New York, NY 10016; e-mail, barron.[email protected]org.This article was published at Annals.org on 15 June 2021. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee Also“We Do Not Want Him Because He Is a Jew”: The Montreal Interns' Strike of 1934 Edward C. Halperin Metrics June 2021Volume 174, Issue 6Page: 866-867KeywordsDisclosureGraduate medical educationHistory of medicineJewish peopleMedical ethicsPatientsRacial and ethnic discriminationRacial and ethnic issuesStructural racismUrology ePublished: 15 June 2021 Issue Published: June 2021 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2021 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...