Drew Ferrara
History Research Essay
The Professionalization of Medicine
From witch doctors and potions to specialized surgeons and technologically advanced equipment, the field of medicine has come a long way. In the past, an ordinary person could pose as a doctor and claim to cure people’s ailments with their ludicrous concoctions. In the past, doctors did not have such a high status and degree of training as they do today. Ordinary men could claim to be trained doctors because there was no required documentation or certification which said otherwise. Therefore, when anyone seeked medical assistance, they would have to trust doctors based on their word alone. This made it easy for amateurs to make money because they could sell counterfeit medicine to civilians. There was no solid way or form in which people could distinguish between a real physician, who strived to help others in need, and a commonplace man, who was trying to earn quick money at the expense of others. Tired of having their patients stolen and not treated properly, trained doctors wanted to banish amateurs from the medical world.
Since there was no definite way to differentiate between a trained doctor and an imposter, it was often difficult to decide if someone was qualified and skilled enough to be considered a professional physician. To create a guideline and criteria for doctors to be judged, a group of two hundred and fifty trusted physicians formed the American Medical Association, otherwise known as AMA, in 1847. The American Medical Association was comprised of successful and honorable physicians who strived "To promote the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health"(American Medical Association).The members of the American Medical Association decided that there should be a set of rules and requirements for training in order to be considered a professional doctor. Therefore, at the AMA's introductory meeting , the members created the Code of Medical Ethics, the first document stating the criteria or requirements for medical training and learning. The AMA's Code of Medical Ethics defines the importance of medicine and puts forth rules and standards in which physicians must uphold and follow with utmost respect. The code also proclaims that the medical profession has the power to be self-regulated. The American Medical Association has retained many of its original canons from the Code of Medical Ethics, however, the list is ever growing and evolving due to the advances and changes in medicine which still occur to this day.
Since there was no definite way to differentiate between a trained doctor and an imposter, it was often difficult to decide if someone was qualified and skilled enough to be considered a professional physician. To create a guideline and criteria for doctors to be judged, a group of two hundred and fifty trusted physicians formed the American Medical Association, otherwise known as AMA, in 1847. The American Medical Association was comprised of successful and honorable physicians who strived "To promote the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health"(American Medical Association).The members of the American Medical Association decided that there should be a set of rules and requirements for training in order to be considered a professional doctor. Therefore, at the AMA's introductory meeting , the members created the Code of Medical Ethics, the first document stating the criteria or requirements for medical training and learning. The AMA's Code of Medical Ethics defines the importance of medicine and puts forth rules and standards in which physicians must uphold and follow with utmost respect. The code also proclaims that the medical profession has the power to be self-regulated. The American Medical Association has retained many of its original canons from the Code of Medical Ethics, however, the list is ever growing and evolving due to the advances and changes in medicine which still occur to this day.
a. Paul Starr
i. “He is a professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at the Sociology Department, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University, where he holds the Stuart Chair in Communications and Public Affairs.”
ii. He “served as a senior health policy advisor in the White House in 1993.”
a. Ivan Waddington
a. William C. Cockerham
a. S.E.D. Shortt
