Holoubek, Joe E.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 27 | Number 3 Article 4August 1960Activities of the National Federation of CatholicPhysicians' GuildsJoe E. HoloubekFollow this and additional works at: https://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationHoloubek, Joe E. (1960) "Activities of the National Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 27 : No. 3 ,Article 4.Available at: https://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol27/iss3/4the danger the positio; being relegated · civil servants.It's absi..rd to oppose loss autonomy by platitudes instead correcting the cause. It may I too late to build dikes; perha1 the need now is for boats. the time to advise of the proble1 s involved in practice. The phy -cian is fast becoming a journe -man because no one has explair d the intricacies of the professi, 1. The physician must be gh n autonomy; he must be revered )r all humanity suffers. This, it )­pears to me, is the task facing t Jr County Medical Societies. Medicine and its contribution the health and happiness of evei individual is not sufficiently ar preciated because no one has tak� *Mr. Berry is Associate Professo1 in Hospital Administration, St. Louis l .1i­versity, St. Louis, Missouri. MEMENTO OF OUR PATRON SAINT .. 10-i An attractive, ova size, oxidized medal of St. Luke is ow available through th1; National F�deration Office. Cati Jlic physicians will want to carry this remembrance of f1eir Patron Saint. Order now and for distribution to those attendini;; the "White Mass" on October I 8. Write to, National Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds 1438 So. Grand Blvd. St. Louis 4, Missouri Prices, 25c each; 50 for $10.00; 100 for $18.00; 500 for $80.00, and I 000 for $140.00. LINACRE QUARTERLY ACTIVITIES OF THE Nl tONAL FEDERATION OF CATHOLIC PHY CIANS' GUILDS JoE E. How <. M.D.* TN THE NAME of our presi­Jl dent, Dr. Eusebius J. Murphy of Bronx, New York, I wish to extend the g r eetings of the National Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds to all of you attending the IX International Congress of Catholic Doctors. I consider it a privilege to be asked to speak to this group and to bring you a report of the activities of your American colleagues. The National Federation of Catholic . Physicians' Guilds was formulated in 1927 by the late Dr. Richard A. Rendich in Brook­lyn, New York, following a retreat for Brooklyn Catholic physicians. The "retreat group" became a "Guild."· These 'physicians prac­ticed in their daily lives the in­spiration they had received in the retreat. The movement spread slowly, with the majority of Guilds organizing in eastern United States. It was in 1932 that the Various groups were united as one, and the Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds was founded. The objectives of the Federation are: To uphold the principles of the Catholic faith and morality as re­lated to the science and practice of medicine. AUGUST, 1960 To assist ecclesiastical authori­s in the diffusion of the knowl­ge of Catholic medical ethics. To uphold Catholic hospitals their enforcement of Catholic >ral principles in medical prac­e. To these others may be added: To increase the spiritual life of � Catholic doctor. To make all doctors conscious their dependence upon God in eir daily practice of medicine. In 1944 the Catholic Hospital ssociation offered its offices in . Louis as a permanent location r the national headquarters. i.. rowth was slow. In fact, there \ ere only eleven Guilds in 1948. There were 60 in 1957 and in 1960 there are now 91 affiliated G ilds in the United States, Can­ada. Puerto Rico, with a total membership of 6,110. ( Figure I shows the location of the indi­v1d ual Guilds.) Individual Guilds vary in mem­bership from 600 in Boston to 8 in Sheridan, Wyoming. They may include the Catholic physicians in •Dr. Holoubek of Shreveport, Louisiana is First Vice-President of the National Federation. As an official deleqate to the IX International Congress of Cath­olic Doctors held in Munich, Germany he gave this address on July 28, 1960. 105 one count, an entire city, an entire d se. The entire stc1 of Arkans. is covered by o Guild, located in Little Rock. lyou see in Figure 2, the State Louisiana is the most complete organized. There are 8 separa Guilds in the State. Each is I cated in a central city and t Catholic doctors in the surroun ing territory are invited to jc their local Guild. The heavi populated areas such as New 0 leans and Baton Rouge have Jar membership. On the other han there are only 11 in the large ar around Monroe. We have reachr the goal of a Guild within 50 mil, of the home of every Catholic ph: sician in the State of Louisian . Other States are also organizir.g in this manner. Every diocese in the State of New York has a Guild. The goal of every Catholic doctor in America belonging to a Guild is still far from achieved. .... We estimate that there are sor e 35,000 Catholic physicians in c. r country. In the future, we hope 11 will be members of their lo 11 groups. National Board The Board of Delegates of ur Federation is composed of ele, �d national officers and one re ·e­sentative from each affiliated G• Id. The Board meets twice annu ly, in the summer during the A er­ican Medical Association ge· ral convention and again in the wi (er. The Linacre Quarterly The official journal of the .\Ja­tional Federation of Catholic hy­sicians' Guilds is THE Ln CRE QUARTERLY. It is devoted t( ;:,ro­moting the philosophy and hies of medical practice. It is in :ility a medium to bring together ath­olic theology and medical s �nee. The circulation of the Ma· J 960 > FIGURE I. 106 LINACRE QUARTERLY issue was I 0.360. It is receivedby _all Guild members. Other sub­scnbers are medical scho I h ·t ) )"b Os, OS-pl a I raries and members of th clergy. e G•ilds in ActionGuilds in Action is a newslettersefnt to. �embers. It contains a listo activ1ties of the gro n ups, an-mouncements of interest to allembers, and a section to h I Catholic doctors find locat· e p practice. ions to their families attending the ,LA. convention are invited to nd. It is usually held at 5 :00 · and celebrated by the Mod­or of the Federation, presidedr by the Bishop of the d· 5 10cese. ne . 50 persons assisted at thess m Miami, Florida, June I 5 , year. 1 leration Exhibit3in�e 1956 the Federation has ub1ted at the American M d' l . t· e 1ca soc1a ion a n  nu a I convention.Memorial Mass e booth has a large cl. 1 A M ·ti d "M isp ay emorial Mass for all de-1 e . or�l Principles in Med-ceased members of the A . I Practice. It is staffed b M d' mencan b f G Y e ical Association is offered :m ers o uilds. Copies of THE Dually d . h an- 'IACRE QuA All . unng t e summer meeting. .· RTERLY and publi-A o�1c_ers and delegates of the , dO�s explaining medico-moral ssoc1ation, Catholic physician f inc1ples are distributed. Manys r ndreds of non-Catholic as well ST A TE OF LC) USIANA • I FIGURE 2. l - Shreveport _ Boas ier 2 - Honroe J - Alo·1ndrh 4 - Leke 011rles 5 - Lafayette 6 - 61ton Rouge 7 - liou-8 - New Orlons 107 as CathoL exhibit anc! and princii-' ,hysicians visit t'l.:: .1rn about our beli,· Thomas Linacre AwardPeriodically, the Thomas Linac Award is given to the Catho physician contributing an ar�tcle THE LINACRE QUARTERLY Judg by an editorial board to be me valuable in content to promote t interests of the journal in its effo to express opinions in the Hght Catholic teaching as applied medical practice. In 1957 D Roy J. Heffernan and William · Lynch received the Aw_ard ftheir article "Is Therapeutic Abe tion Scientifically Justified?" 1958 it was received by Dr. Euge, · G. Laforet for his contributi ,1,"Boxing, Medical and Moral Apects." An Award will be mad,.to a medical student in the futur� should worthy contributions be re­ceived, to encourage writing in the medico-moral field. Catholic Physician of the Year This Award to the Catholic Physician of the Year is presented at the winter meeting of the Fed­eration to a Catholic doctor who is outstanding in his medical and spiritual life. Recipients have been the late Dr. Edward M. Gans. Harlowton, Montana, in 1957; the late Dr. Joseph J. Toland, Jr., of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ,  in 1958, and Dr. John J. Masterson of Brooklyn, New York, in 1959. The White Mass Since 1954, the Guilds have been urged to celebrate the "White Mass" to honor St. Luke, Patron 108 of Physicians, on October 18. , he Mass is offered in cathedrals, f r­ish churches, and hospital char ls, the choice being local with he sponsoring Guilds. Many Cati lie hospitals in areas where the, is no active Guild observe the o :a­sion, inviting their medical ! Ifs and hospital personnel to at ,d. Silver Jubilee Celebration The largest social functio of the National Federation wa. the Silver Jubilee celebration h: in New York City, June 5, 195, An M I I:, 1ted anniversary ass was ce e at St. Patrick's Cathedral at :00 a.m. In the evening a banque and ball were held at the Wa orf­Astoria Hotel with guests e� !ed­ing I, I 00. Representatives vere present from all of the na anal medical organizations. Ge ual Carlos Romulo of the Phil pine Republic addressed the gro '· Local Guild Activities Each Guild is autonomou in its d · t· ,ome program an orgamza 100. have monthly meetings; othc . plan quarterly sessions. Pr_o_gra s are h t 1.eeds planned to serve t e spm ua of member physicians. Retreats are sponsor e, · All Guild members are encour,, ,ed to make one annually. Days of Recollection ar� often held in local hospital chapels. These usually begin with 9:00 o'clock Mass on Sunday, followed by three or four spiritual c?nf�r­ences and periods of me<l1tat1on throughout the day. d A Requiem Mass for decease members of a local group is usually celebrated by the Moderator once LINACRE QUARTERLY a year. Nocturnal Adoration, FirstFriday Communion and other spir­itual activities are sponsored. En­richment of the spiritual life of the doctor is the primary purpose of these activities. Members are urged to spend a certain period of each day in meditation. In the State of Louisiana a Memorial Mass is celebrated for deceased members of the Louisiana State Medical Society at its annual meeting. Officers and members, Catholic and non-Catholic, are in­vited to attend. Families of de­ceased members are sent special invitations. Arrangements for the Mass are taken care of by the Guild in the city where the Med­ical Society has its annual meeting. Medical Care Functions Some Guilds provide medical care to indigent groups, homesfor the aged and orphanages.Others supply medical care tolarge diocesan gatherings where physicians niight be needed. <... holic Physicians' Guilds to pre­� an examination form for en­•ce as well as annual check-up ch is part of the plan to assist rhis area. A pilot project was ducted in the dioceses of Alex­ria and New Orleans, Louisi-1. Through this program, eachgious and priest receives a1plete examination with roent-10gram of the chest and neces­y laboratory work each year.'r. Alice Baker Holoubek dis­;ses the subject in a separateJer.)ug Program for the MissionsSeveral Guilds have organized :JUps that pick up unused drug s 'Ilples from physicians' offices d ship them to the foreign mis­� ns. More than $750,000 worth t drug samples have been sent to r ·edy Catholic mission hospitals o, erseas, through the efforts of the New Orleans, Louisiana Guild. The effort is being extended to include the entire State. fftalth Program for Parochial School Children Medical Student Groups Many Guilds devote special at­tention to medical students, hos­pital internes and residents. In some areas they are invited to · participate in Guild activities and receive THE LINACRE QUARTERLY. Discussion groups for medical stu­dents are organized in some areas and regular meetings are held to consider medico-moral principles. Non-Catholic students are invited to attend. The New Orleans, LouisianaGuild supplies physicians to ex­lmine needy first grade schoolchildren. Necessary inoculations 1ft provided. A "healthmobile" for hearing tests, visual, and dental tlaminations is also sponsored. th Program for Religious andThe requests for help to estab­a health-care program for re­lous and clergy has prompted Catholic Hospital Association the National _Federation of Medico-Moral Problems Institutes Periodically, meetings with hos­pital sisters, chaplains, nurses, and physicians are held in various 109 localities the discussion ,f medico-m,, problems. Prom in theologia,·o conduct the sessio Guilds in the area often sponsoi special evening for discussion specific problems. Courses , given to graduate and stud, nurses on medical ethics. Otl conferences on such topics as h) nosis, moral considerations in ra ology, the Catholic physician at pre-marital counsellor and fam counsellor have been among the discussed. Books concerning me· ico-moral principles are distr uted to local hospitals, medi schools and nursing libraries some of the groups. Research Grants Research grants have been Sl ··­ported by some Guilds, to stimuJ,. this activity in Catholic hospita · High School Students and Medicine In some areas, Guilds provid speakers for local Catholic high schools to encourage young me;1 and women to choose medicine as a career. State-wide Activities In Louisiana, the officers and Moderators of the eight Guilds in the State have a meeting once a year and discuss their programs and related activities. A newsletter is published monthly and distrib­uted to 400 members throughout the State. Social Activities A number of Guilds have dinner meetings to which members' wives I 10 are invited. Speakers discuss tor cs of mutual interest. Needless to say, cooperation of the spouse, is essential for the success of ny Guild activity. Medical Mission Activities Foreign mission activities are becoming a concern to the Ja­tional Federation of Catholic I �y­sicians' Guilds as well as to A er­ican Catholics. Some Guild� are encouraging programs to £aw iar­ize themselves with the me ical m1ss1on activities of the Ch rch. A few members have gor to mission hospitals to teach and work.· Intern es and resident are being urged to devote one to hree years of their lives in the s, vice of God in the medical missic s of His Church. Outstanding , 1ong these are the Los Angeles, .::ali­fornia Guild that is spon >ring three physicians in the A dean missions and the Detroit, l 'ichi­gan Guild that is sending a , hysi­cian to operate a mission h, spital in Guatemala. At the recer.• sum­mer meeting of the Federa, on in Miami, Florida a committr was appointed to study methc, ls of , correlating medical mission ictivi­ties of the various Guilds nd to develop a program that would promote service in the Catholic mission field. Needless to say, the activities of the National Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds and its various affiliates are varied. However, the basic aim is to bring spiritual counsel and moral guid­ance to the physician so that he may be a more deeply religious LINACRE QUARTERLY man and a better Catholic in his daily practice of medicine. I will close with the Physician's Prayer which has been adopted by the Federation: Divine Healer of the sick, Christ Jesus Our Lord. without whose aid I can do nothing, look down with favor upon me. e skill to my hand, clear vision to my d, kindness and sympathetic under­d:ng to my heart. Give me singleness n1rpose, strength to lighten at least a t of the burden of my suffering fellow-1 and a true realization of the privile·ge t is mine. Direct my work that it may praiseworthy in Thy sight and suc­sful unto those entrusted to my care. ·e me the strong and simple faith of hild that I may rely on Thee, and in things do Thy will. Amen. PLAN NOW. . . . for THE WHli - MASS OCTOBER 18, FEA �T OF ST. LUKE PATRON O F  I dYSICIANS ANNUAL MASS OFFERED B MEMBERS OF THE MEDI­·CAL PROFESSION AND ALL tFHERS DEVOTED TO THE CARE OF THE SICK. HONOR ST. LUKE, PATRON OF· PHYSICIANS. Ill OR. FRANKLYN E. VERDON of Coral G.ablt s, Florida rect lvH congratulat ions of Father John J . Flanagara. S.J .. editor of THE LI NACRE QUARTERLY and utcullvt director of Tht Catholic Hospit al Association. following his appo intm tnt u Ftd t ration ncrttary. Or. VHdon is a mtmbtr of tht Miam i Guild. HIGHLIGHTS OR. EUSEBIUS J. MURPHY. Bron�. N. Y .. national federation �:�:��=t���:��:t si·��o��;ie�:�.al;. �ar�o�f�,·�h� lttia'�ttJ�;!:�/ ��a�s(?r(j;,1;arthJ�t�gar�1!hr�r .. afr�:�dbn�o�i ���n�:�i ;t 1�h�lcA�u.�� annual convtnlion whl"rt tht Calholic vitwpo int on ml"d1ci1l-moral probltms wu uplilintd 10 visitors. t:.:RVERS during Mtmorial Mass wrre mt.mbtrs ami Guild . D r. Lauth is shown as ht" strvts Msgr. !\. rGowan, who distributtd Holy Communion 10 phys1c1an and thdr families. EDERATION ACTIVITIES A JUNE 13-17, 1960 Meeting • Memorial Mass Gt,IJLO REPRESENTATIVES a1trnding the annual meeting of the national ftdl"rat ion execut ive board mre11ng. Junt 15. Or. Clemen1 P. Cunnin gham, Rock Islan d . Ill. and stcond ,1ce-pre!ident of tht n ation ­al organi :a tion. is upl ain ing plan for Gu ild mtmbt rship d rive. 

Activities of the National Federation of Catholic Physicians\u27 Guilds

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Activities of the National Federation of Catholic Physicians\u27 Guilds

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