Truth as Humility Nourishing Compassion Through Wisdom

Among the strengths of forensic psychiatry as a profession is its ability to support lively discussion of critical questions, such as how to characterize its own essence and whether it belongs to the practice of medicine. The American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law is fortunate that Michael Norko has taken the occasion of his presidential address to describe in depth the results of the advanced stage of his probing on a truly spiritual level the fundamental place of compassion in the practice of forensic psychiatry. In so doing, he casts inevitable light on the seamless connections binding forensic psychiatry and medicine, particularly the importance for both of practicing compassion in our search for truth.