xt7xks6j2258_533 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7xks6j2258/data/mets.xml https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7xks6j2258/data/rankin4kdl.dao.xml Rankin, Fred W. (Fred Wharton),
                    1886- Cubit feet ? 7 boxes This collection comprises six scrapbooks (plus one box of miscellaneous items) of letters, newsclippings, and photographs documenting major milestones in the career of Lexinngton, Kentucky surgeon Fred W. Rankin, M.D. archival material English unknown This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed.  Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically.  Physical rights are retained by the owning repository.  Copyright is retained in accordance with U. S. copyright laws.  For information about permissions to reproduce or publish, contact the Special Collections Research Center. Fred W. Rankin, M.D. Scrapbooks Correspondence –– Rankin, Fred W. (Fred Wharton),
                1886- American Medical Association Military Medicine –– History –– United
                States American Surgical Association American College of Surgeons Letter from Paul R. H., American College of Surgeons,                                 Chicago, Illinois, to Fred W. Rankin, M.D., complimenting him on the                                 draft of the speech he will give as his inaugural address as                                 President of the American College of Surgeons text Letter from Paul R. H., American College of Surgeons,                                 Chicago, Illinois, to Fred W. Rankin, M.D., complimenting him on the                                 draft of the speech he will give as his inaugural address as                                 President of the American College of Surgeons 2012 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7xks6j2258/data/rankin4kdl_7/rankin4kdl_7_6/i7-6-1/i7-6-1.pdf July 24, 1953 1953 July 24, 1953 section false xt7xks6j2258_533 xt7xks6j2258 /T§$§g§g§$2o
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July 24, 1953
Fred W. Rankin, M.D., F.A.C.S. ‘ ,
271 West Short Street (
Lexington, Kentucky
My dear Fred:
. I have read the draft of your Presidential Address with the greatest
( pleasure. As I encountered several passages, I could feel the adrenalin beihg A
poured into my bloodstream. By the way, it is my impression that this is a
° Presidential Address -- that the Regents decided to substitute at least your
Presidential Address for the Fellowship Address. Whether this will be con-
tinued, I do not know. This year, there will be two Presidential Addresses --
Foss' on Monday night and yours on Friday night.
Naturally I am pleased with your condemnation of those who attempt
to gag men who speak out against unethical practices. But my great thrill
comes from your philosophy of surgical practice, such as -— “. . . we do not
have too many adequately trained specialists and that too frequently surgery
is inexpectly and incompetently done by men with too little training and ex-
perience . . . Minor surgery is major surgery when done by an unskilled hand
(this is a jewel) .... surgical operations .... when you are the patient
are very personal experiences."
Your statement upon the responsibility of hospitals is splendid. I
don't know whether you know about the recent uproar in Indianapolis. St.
Vincent's Hospital kicked three surgeons off the staff for unnecessary surgery
(after a medical audit). Two of them were "commercial" surgeons with tremen-
dous practices, and fee-splitters. None was a Fellow. We were asked to survey,
and we got the Joint Commission to request us to survey all Indianapolis hos-
pitals at the same time.
As the result of our survey, both St. Vincent's and Methodist Hospital
were dropped to Provisional Approval; and the Conference Gom ittee in Graduate
Training in Surgery withdrew approval of surgical residencies in both these
I hospitals.
The President of the Board of Methodist Hospital, a member of the
Board, and the Administrator came to Chicago to see me. They were fine people.
I bore down on their responsibility; and the next day the Administrator tele-
phoned me to express appreciation for educating his Board to their responsi-
bility. They will clean up the mess; of that I am sure.
How right you are about the importance of the humanities in medicine.
The confidence of the patient in his doctor is lacking unless it embrace the
doctor both as a friend and a trusted advisor. Patients of my grandfather and
my father came to them for advice upon how to vote in the next election, when
` FOUNDED BY SURGEONS OF' THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA. ISIB

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_ to sell their wheat, how to invest their small savings. Needless to say,
they regarded the medical advice given them as statute law./
' ` “, . . the economic side of medicine is purely automatic Qs; . .
¤f— Pecuniary rewards are of least consequence in the satisfaction which comes
with a duty well done.“ Wonderful! \
\_ This address will take its place among the really great documents»
`pv __ of this»College. I say this with no intent of flattering you. It exp esses
completely, and much better than I can, my own philosophy and concept of the ·
~/{_ practice of medicine. The principal reason I left practice and joined the
~ Army was that my conscience bothered me about taking money from patients for
whom I had done nothing -— other than give sympathetic attention to their ,
_ troubles. After two years internship in a hospital where we did have some c
» a ·~·· facilities~for·diagnosis;~crndc»asathey~would seem~today, I found myself a e
helpless in too many cases when I had nothing but my eyes, my ears and my
hands. I was guessing too many times; and the worst of it I had to charge
,e= for my guessing. When anything appeared serious, of course I referred the
' patient to a specialist; but there were just too man  that could not be re-
ferred. 4
Don’t tell me about general practitioners a1d bad medicine. I
have seen too much.
With very best regards,
_ As alway?§:)
PRH:JG g