Volume 187 - Issue 11
Patient privacy and Latin
Author: Max Kamien
Med J Aust 2007; 187 (11): 688. || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2007.tb01479.x
Published online: 3 December 2007
Published online: 3 December 2007
To the Editor: The recent letters1-5 on the “lamentable decline in the use of both Latin and Greek terms in medical practice”4 activated a not-too-distant memory for me.
Having exhausted all avenues of progress, I managed to obtain an appointment with the Vice-Chancellor. His prior meeting that day had been with leaders of the Greek community, who trooped out of his office looking rather glum. They were unhappy that ongoing financial support would not be provided for the teaching of Modern Greek at the University.
That night, I had a dream. In it, the V-C returned home to his wife, who asked, “And how was your day, Bob?” “Oh, just like any other”, he replied. “Kamien from General Practice was in, complaining about the demise of classical Greek from the medical curriculum”.
The next day, I rang the V-C to tell him about the dream. He laughed. I have wondered, since, whether such unlikely events may have strengthened his resolve to provide the toehold that our Department so desperately needed.
References
- Haley KA. Patient privacy and Latin: my father’s story [letter]. Med J Aust 2007; 186: 328.
- Piazza P. Patient privacy and Latin: my father’s story [letter]. Med J Aust 2007; 187: 375. 0_pgfId-1106789
- Mitchell J. Patient privacy and Latin: my father’s story [letter]. Med J Aust 2007; 187: 375. 0_pgfId-1106799
- Renton-Power WEM. Patient privacy and Latin: my father’s story [letter]. Med J Aust 2007; 187: 375. 0_i1091816
- Allen RKA. Patient privacy and Latin: my father’s story [letter]. Med J Aust 2007; 187: 375. 0_i1091818