This Article  • Full text PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

L.S.K.

JAMA. 1968;204(1):64.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

Physicians have a tremendous urge to write, but unfortunately the urge seems limited principally to the technical aspects of medicine. Rarely, physicians have won fame by writing in fields non-medical, especially in fiction and poetry. A handful have won a lasting place in literature; another handful have won substantial esteem, although their place in literature still has to be assessed. But, overall, only very few make a significant effort to combine letters and medicine.

THE JOURNAL, in its annual Book Issue, has tried to encourage such efforts. In the past four years, the spontaneously offered contributions have been few indeed. Virtually all contributions have been solicited. What happened to the urge to write that medical men exhibit in their specialties? Must we say that the medical pen cannot pass the boundaries imposed by antibiotics and hormones, action currents, mattress sutures and catheters?

The present Book Issue provides a clear answer . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?