‘That is as if you were to wish on the physician nothing but migraines, measles and wasp stings, only ailments that are skin-deep. If, on the contrary, you wish to see me as crown prosecutor, you should wish on me those fearful illnesses that bring honour to the doctor who cures them.’ The Count of […]
Read More Medicine and The Count of Monte Cristo: Dumas and a clinical revolutionMaybe a pathogen from outer space will wipe out all intelligent life on Earth. Perhaps it already has. In any case, what sort of virus might it be? Adenovirus (I-don’t-know-virus). Learning objectives 1. Explore the current thinking behind pathogen viability outside Earth 2. Consider the panspermia hypothesis and potential relationship to pandemics 3. Reflect on […]
Read More Astro-pathogens, exo-infections and xeno-medicine (plus a physician’s approach to panspermia)Can physicians discover empathy and derive clinical expertise from art? Let’s try with The Sick Child by Edvard Munch. Learning objectives 1. Utilise The Sick Child to try and discover empathy 2. Reflect on the meaning of clinical expertise 3. Consider how experiences of illness can be expressed through art Edvard Munch (1863-1944) is perhaps […]
Read More The Sick Child: Edvard, empathy and expertiseIs it dangerous to lick a diamond? Can I die from swallowing a diamond? What happens if you eat diamond dust? Is diamond harmful or helpful for health? These are some of the questions about diamond ingestion and toxicity that appear on the internet. Isn’t the answer clear cut? Learning objectives 1. Explore the origins […]
Read More Dangerous diamonds from Benvenuto to Bollywood (the myths and medicine of diamond ingestion)The ‘doctor-patient relationship’ is a problematic term. What exactly is it? Would Fildes iconic image leave the observer with a different taste if instead it portrayed the parents propping up a smartphone next to their poorly child? Learning objectives 1. Review how The Doctor has stood the test of time 2. Consider the impact of […]
Read More ‘The Doctor’ by Fildes. Part 3: the trouble with telemetryRing, my friend, I said you’d call Doctor Robert Day or night he’ll be there any time at all Doctor Robert Doctor Robert, The Beatles Learning objectives 1. Continue our exploration of ‘The Doctor’. 2. Reflect on how images and their use shape societal expectations. 3. Think about how the medical profession will manage […]
Read More ‘The Doctor’ by Fildes. Part 2: Poverty and propagandaApparently a a picture is worth a thousand words, but what can a Victorian painting tell us about doctors today? Learning objectives 1. Look at ‘The Doctor’ by Fildes. 2. Consider the societal expectations of doctors. 3. Reflect on whether doctors can live up to Victorian ideals. The Victorian era was an exciting period for […]
Read More ‘The Doctor’ by Fildes. Part 1: Painting and powerWhen you think of the term ‘doctor‘, what picture pops into your head? Images of doctors have changed through the ages, but never have they been more ubiquitous than they are now. They are powerful tools of communication. Do the images cause problems not only in the way patients view doctors but also in the […]
Read More What does Dr. Google look like?Ship’s surgeon William Anderson died in 1778 and was buried at sea. Captain James Cook decided to name the island near the burial after Anderson. Cook, however, had made an uncharacteristic error. He failed to realise that the island had already been discovered by the explorer Bering in 1728. St. Lawrence Island, as it was […]
Read More Whatever happened to Anderson Island?William Anderson was born 28th December 1750. Although he attended Edinburgh University, he qualified at Surgeon’s Hall in London in 1770. In 1772 he joined Captain James Cook on his second voyage as surgeon’s mate on HMS Resolution. Learning objectives 1. Find out more about William Anderson 2. Explore the transferrable skills of clinicians 3. […]
Read More More than a ship’s surgeon: William Anderson