Medical Powerlessness [Outline]

Essay (400-800 words): Examine Abraham Verghese’s My Own Country and any other significant readings from the semester to discuss the personal and medical significance of therapeutic failure. Can you discern historical trends in how doctors respond to their powerlessness in the face of fatal illness? You might consider (but do not limit your response to) faith in progress, spiritual faith, social medicine, or doctor patient relationships.

Thesis: Therapeutic failure shattered faith in medical progress causing doctors to fall into despair and turn to social medicine.

      I.         Introduction

    II.         Personal Reaction to Therapeutic failure in 19^th Century

A.     Faith crushed, Little hope of successful allopathic treatment – despair

1.     Stowe – Story of Dr. Yandell and son’s death via dysentery

B.     Deep/close doctor-patient relations to off set despair à Doctor as sacerdotal role

1.     Use of faith for good death (Concept of doctor’s role)

  III.         Medical Reaction to failure in 19^th Century

A.     Fight against established medicine – quackery and opposing medical sects

B.     Heroic medicine: patient death - Using God as an excuse or time

   IV.         Personal Reaction to failure in AIDS Outbreak

A.     Faith crushed, Little hope of treatment for viral disease – despair/rejection

B.     Deep/close doctor-patient relations to provide comfort

1.     Recommendation to social support groups

     V.         Medical Reaction to failure in AIDS Outbreak

A.     Turn to social medicine and preventative health

B.     Euthanasia and the right to die

Conclusion