A Clinician's Rationale for the Study of History of Medicine

History of medicine does not receive the coverage it deserves in medical school curricula, or during graduate medical training, in part, because of its lack of impact on direct clinical care. This is particularly disturbing for the specialty of anesthesiology not only due to its colorful history, but also because ours is the only major medical discipline to have developed entirely in the United States. We examine four commonly cited reasons for the study of history in general, and comment on whether these lessons are applicable to medicine and anesthesiology. We provide compelling reasons why studying history is important to clinicians.

Humans are the only species to be aware of their past. Our future is largely unknown, and the present is fleeting. Thus, almost everything that is known with certainty falls within the realm of history. Thus one would expect society at large, and physicians and anesthesiologists in particular, to be history enthusiasts. As the facts suggest otherwise, one wonders whether history is regarded much like art, music, and fine cuisine - more adornment than an essential and integral part of education in any discipline, especially medicine. Among other elements that comprise the discipline, history writing can be considered a narrative of words, deeds, ideas, conflicts and sufferings from the past that have been subjected to verification.(1-4) Students of history interpret these events to learn causality as well as their importance. As our world becomes increasingly dependent on science and technology, as the body of literature in every field explodes in quantity, and as specialized skills are required in almost every occupation, an existential question emerges - is there a need for someone working in the sciences to be familiar with history? The question is particularly important in the field of medicine in view of the commonly held belief that historical study rarely brings about a change in current practice. We examine some reasons commonly cited in support of the study of history, in order to determine whether these societal benefits can be extended to science in general and to medicine in particular.(5).