Quick, Armand J.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 33 | Number 3 Article 19August 1966Morals and the Medical ScientistArmand J. QuickFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationQuick, Armand J. (1966) "Morals and the Medical Scientist," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 33 : No. 3 , Article 19.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol33/iss3/19Morals and the Medical Scientist ARMAND J. QurcK, Ptt.D., M.D.The story is told that a man approached a group of artisans �nd inquired what they were domg. From one he received the answer that he was working for five francs a day· from another, that he was laying' stones; but from the third, with luster in the man's eyes, that he was building a cathedral. I like to believe that the scene �as Chartres and that this man �1th other kindred spirits brought mto being that gem of architecture - the Cathedral of Chartres. There are many cathedrals and not all are built of stone and mortar. Some are alle­gorical or figurative, like the stru_c­ture of medicine. This too was butlt by artisans, many_ of _whom w?rkedmerely to gain a hvehhood while to others it meant the humdrum of a profession, but to a fe"". w�o ?ad vision, dedication and msp1ratton, the structure of medicine took form and to them we owe not only the foundation but also its spires. What about the rules of conduct or code of morals for these build:rs we now call medical scientists? Like all men they are first of all human beings with the same basic instincts and weaknesses in which greed and stupidity often dominate, but they are also endowed with ideali��­Many are keenly aware of the pnv1-lege of working in a_ field that ca:1 add to human happmess by allevi­ating suffering, im�roving he�lth and saving lives. Like the artisan of the story who recognized his good fortune in building a cathedral 274 massive scientist and his ·iety this the best ; to s e ek instead of a bull ring or fortress, so the medical should realize his privileg obligations. He owes to � opportunity and one o· means to repay his deb! truth unselfishly and wi promise. How beautif, illustrated by Gregor r, painstakingly from a s4 ment of growing pe, careful observations wr ulously recorded, dedu Jut corn­y this is 1del, who )le experi­md after 1 he metic­the theory s name. It gave any tl value of of heredity that bear is doubtful whether thought to the potc his work. )f medical :·acticaI, one the morality .d study that ,t could help . is expressed · entist: "For orld War II the fact that problem t�at ctical relatron :r." One may ,,,cause it had _= even Nobel n for practical don to pure superior think­iJe a fetish t�at ,•ds of humanity� ·'S of science wer ;1 ts such as Isaac Though the ai· research need not 1: can justifiably quest of eschewing any m. might lead to resuh mankind. This att,· by a well-knowr many years befor we were very prou, we were working'· seemed to have n( to medicine what, ask why be pro':1• no practical va·, prizes have been contributions. I science may conr_ · ing but it may & ; blinds one to the Not all great adva made by mental ; Emeritus of Bio-Dr. Quick is Profr ,. _r . . School ol chemistry, Marque!: . LJ111vers1ty Medicine. TERLY L1:;:,_ ACRE QUAR Newton or Willard Gibbs. Perhaps the simple milkmaid who told Jenner that those who had cowpox did not contract smallpox deserved a dis­tinguished service award. Because the scientist is human he does not escape man's primitive instincts, especially greed - that compelling force that underlies thegrim law of the survival of the fittest. He lives in a competitive world and to succeed as a leader he must lose no opportunity to fosterhis progress and to win recognition.If he falls by the wayside and becomes satisfied to follow rather than to lead or in other words, be willing to become a layer of stones, the temptations that arise from greed or from its more sophisticated forms, ambition and aggressiveness, are minimized. He will add no newspires but with honest endeavor hecan contribute to the solidarity ofthe structure. To the one who has the awarenesssophically he remnrked: Mein tagwird schon komnwn. In his case it was fortunate that his theory was ignored for 35 year� Had it beengiven attention, .it is likely that somuch hostile criticism would havebeen levied against the tl·cory thatpoor Mendel would have been dis­credited and deprived of the acclaim he rightfully attained by a later generation that had no em·y for a dead man. An original and valid contributionof building a �athedral will comethe joy and exhilaration of creative­ness which are difficult to describebut can be gleaned from a statement of Jenner after he had successfully developed vaccination against small­pox: "The joy I felt at the prospectbefore me of being the instrumentdestined to take away from theYiorld one of its greatest scourges�. so excessive that I sometimesIUUlld myself in a kind of reverie."the The .right of the scientist to enjoyoften fruits ?f his labor is obvious but � denied him. The scientist is.._,_an and it is natural that he"l'l:llttS recognition. Even Mendel•,aln� as he was in the practice of�bty was not indifferent to the�ect his work received. Philo-�, 1966 has a right to recognition and thescientist does not violate the ruk of modesty or humility by fighting for this right, provided he is th:Jr­oughly honest. Truth can easily be distorted by omissions, slight distor­tions and misinterpretations of data,especially when it is supposedly a new discovery. A scientist to deserve the honor of being called great must be fair to his fellow scientists. The desire for recognit on is justified when its objective b to promulgate truth and not mere!y to gain self-aggrandizement. Priority by itself is of minor importance and the bitter polemics that it often engenders are soon forgotten. Even men who made out­standing contributions that were accepted and recognized without con­troversy are rarely remembered one or two generations after their death. How many biochemists are familiar with the name of Chevereul? Yet this man not only lived to be !03 years old but laid the structure of our knowledge of the chemistry of fats. Most men are satisfied knowing that their work served as another stepping stone in the ultimate solu­tion of a problem. A few howe�er who, by chance, luck, or a supenor 275 mind, become, as Jenner expressed it, the "instrument" to a new concept that affects the welfare of mankind, present a special moral problem. The medical scientist who has made a discovery or who has devel­oped something that is of direct benefit to man has a moral duty to try making it available. Modesty under these circumstances is not a virtue. Perhaps this problem is most effectively illustrated by Semmel­weiss and Oliver Wendell Holmes. Both independently deduced the contagiousness of puerperal fever and both warned of the danger of transferring the contagious agent from the postmortem room to the woman in labor. The hostile oppo­sition that these two men faced is history. Semmelweiss fought for his idea literally with clenched fists and sleeves rolled up and died so to speak in the struggle. Holmes, a gentleman from Boston, wrote a learned paper and after vicious attacks by two great authorities from medical centers in Philadelphia wrote another paper, also in impec­cable style and eloquent English, to defend his views whereupon he gave up his struggle. Women continu:d to die in childbed. Semmelwe1ss was dead and Holmes had become a famous literary figure. Yet it is said Holmes in his heart felt more satisfaction from his two essays on puerperal fever than from the poetry and prose he wrote throughout his long life. History is replete with similar stories. One of the lesser known is that of the great clinician who lived in the middle of the last century, Armand Trousseau, who with Jules 276 Guerin in 1838 found fish c bene­ficial in treating rickets. hough this disease was one of t :; most devastating diseases of civili d man, their work was ignored and 2littled. Even Osler regarded cod :ver oil as a useless grandmother'· remedy. Who should be blamed )r those 80 years in which rickets_w : allowed to run rampant - cnp ing and killing- until Mellanby 1d Chick rediscovered what Trm wu had found? Perhaps if the visitor of the cathedral had cc inquiry he might ha fourth man whose an am in charge of the r cathedral and I see tc and untried ideas arc position is understanc' he supervises a cath,­J the site inued his found a r was: I .1s for this that new arred. His le, whether al of stone and mortar or the fi ·ative struc­ture of medicine. I- knows well the multiple panaceD nat are con­stantly offered both , the sincere but misguided and b· .e charlatans. To those then wl ,re in a posi-Llthority ,  the tion of power am stringent code of m, s that accom· b 1. ·,nust include panies responsi i 1 · tolerance for new ,as, an open­mindedness, justicr• id a modicum of kindness. W}, unreasonable obstinancy, selfish ·ide, and envyn . ·, pel a ma are the motives t1 com h Id he s ou to suppress an i'a, J nnerremember the ' iem:nt. : will made in anguish. / accmatlo deadgo on 1·ust as we'. ,•hen I am b­. tence pro as it does during ' exis l 'ill dieably better, for o: , obst:�oeuW thenwith me- envy _ He ·11 be aask himself w�.\ ·:er he d w]eny theparty to those ·· · J woul kind,benefits of vacci , .1tion to man Q RTERLY JIN ACRE UA Current Literature: :Ju/.,, anJ A-£.,fraclJ • • Material appearing in this column is thought to be of par­ticular interest to the Catholic physicim, because of its moral, religious, or philosophic .contcr.t. The medical literature constitutes the primary but not the sole source of such material. In general, abstracts c:re ,'I.tended to reflect the substance of the original article. Parerithetica/ editorial comment may follow the abstract if considered desirable. Books are reviewed rather than summarized. Contributions and comments from readers are invited . • Hardin, G.: The ghost of authority. Per­spect. Biol. & Med. 9:289-297 Winter 1966. Th� century-long controversy on thepropnety of contraception seems closeto being settled, and in a way that will be fairly satisfactory both to Catholics � non-Catholics. When the problem � �lved it will lose its sharp intrin­� mterest, but .study of the factors lllvolved in obtaining the final settle­ment will be helpful in approaching.other problems that threaten publicpeace, such as abortion, sterilization � artificial insemination. "Dippin;� the rather large literature on this =ect (contraception) I have been any extent suppressed (or at any ratefailed to publicize) thoughtful discus­sions of authority." New ethical prob­lems are constantl y appearing andmore powerful methods· of analyzingthem are needed. Their solution wouldproceed faster if man could be con­vinced that authority is a ghost. (Cf.: Meany, J.: The use of author­ity. America 114:409-411 26 March 1966; Johann, R. 0.: Authority ·,nd fellowship. America 114:591 23 A )[il 1966; Milhaven, J. G.: Loya] opposit,on in the Church. America 114:622-624 30 April 1966.) Elkinton, J. R.: Medicine and the quality of life. (editorial) Ann. Int. Med. 64: 7ll-714 March 1966. bly struck by the remarkable and(-. me) unexpected change that has�lace in ilie attitude of practicingCatholics toward the concept.t.��rity." Shaw's Joan of Arc, John � George Mivart, and Dr. Anne th are all_ ex�mples of the fact . e final cntenon by which one IS not external authority but the t of individual reason. The I>able conclusion is that Author-. not exist. Both individuals and 01_15 have a strong interest in ting the fiction of authority.reasonable to ask whether "the1Utcessfu1 institution ever devisedthe Church of Rome, has to, 1966 The availability of chronic hemodi­alysis as a method of treatment for patients with chronic renal disease has raised several important ethical and sociomedica] problems. Among these is the question of whether quality of life as sustained by chronic dialysis is satisfactory. Although kidney trans­plantation may resolve some of the difficulties, it is still not a complete answer. A further problem concerns the choice of patients to undergo di­alysis in view of their large number and the relative paucity of available facilities. At the pre,ent time only two 277 

Morals and the Medical Scientist

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