The Goodness of the Physician: Hippocrates to High Tech

Time: 6:30pm

Location: College of Physicians of Philadelphia

Since the time of the ancient Hippocratic authors, the physician's personal goodness and morality have been thought to play a significant role in healing. This concept faded in the 18th and 19th century as scientifically-based methods entered increasingly into diagnostic and therapeutic use. It gradually returned in the late 19th and early 20th century, only to be engulfed by the advent of biotechnology in the 1960s. Objectified medicine-at-a-distance has increasingly become the standard of care. The speaker plans to trace the history of the 2500 year notion of the physician's goodness as it has evolved into its present troubled and neglected state. He suggests new approaches to mitigating the associated loss of the personal bond between doctor and patient.