Harsh facts

Over the years many wise people have made some astute observations about medicine as art and science.Here is a small collection with due credit to their owners.

As with eggs, there is no such thing as a poor
doctor, doctors are either good or bad. Fuller Albright.

For most diagnoses all that is needed is an ounce
of knowledge, an ounce of intelligence, and a
pound of thoroughness. Arabic proverb.

The education of the doctor which goes on after
he has his degree, is, after all, the most important
part of his education.

The public is not always sagacious, but in the long
run, it does somehow contrive to find out who are
the skilled lawyers and doctors. john shaw Billings

There are some patients whom we cannot help;
there are none whom we cannot harm. A.L.Bloomfield

Symptoms are the body’s mother tongue; signs are
in a foreign language. John Brown

A long illness seems to be placed between life and
death, in order to make death a comfort both to
those who die and to those who remain. ?????

There are two kinds of appendicitis – acute
appendicitis and appendicitis for revenue only. R.C.Cabot

Before you tell the ‘truth’ to the patient, be sure
you know the ‘truth’ and that the patient wants to
hear it. Chinese proverb

Medicine cures the man who is fated not to die. Chinese Proverb

Diagnosis by intuition is a rapid method of
reaching a wrong conclusion.

What we call experience is often a dreadful list of
ghastly mistakes. Da Costa

Doctors cruelly and needlessly prolong the lives of
the dying (for reasons) of avarice and passion for
technology. M.Gillick

It is unnecessary—perhaps dangerous—in
medicine to be too clever. ?????