Learn though patient care

I love this piece – I think you will too -Socrates on Clinical Excellence

Soc: Are there not in the academy physicians who like to care for the sick and who spend most of their time doing just that?

Dem: Yes, there are some, Socrates, especially in the West, in Ætolia, in parts of Achæa and amongst the barbarians beyond Epirus. But in many other academies it is now considered more important to struggle with problems of more universal application and of potential benefit to the many, and perhaps even to posterity, rather than to spend time on the problems of a single sick individual. It follows that respect and advancement do not come from taking care of patients, and indeed the physician who practices mainly clinical medicine is looked upon as a failure, who hides in the sheltered environment of the academy because he could not succeed in the city. In some cities taking care of patients is still highly regarded, but when too many equally skilled physicians vie for one job, the one who has written more dialogues usually carries the day; and since writing dialogues takes time, the preferred candidate is likely to have spent the least time by the bedside. So you see, Socrates, the result is the same: respect and advancement come from doing everything else but taking care of the sick.

The entire piece is golden. The article had its initial publication in the 1970s, and it rings even more true in 2009.