The American Practitioner Volume 42 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1908 Excerpt: ...It is a well-know fact that the man who goes on sprees occasionally is a much better risk than the so-called moderate drinker, . who makes a habitual practice of taking two to four drinks every day. In regard to tuberculosis, the question whether the applicant has been intimately associated with anyone who has tuberculosis is a very important one. I think the point Dr. Grant wishes to emphasize is that our report should be as concise and comprehensive as possible without going into details of minor matters unless the examiner believes that there is something in the applicant's history which will tend to shorten his life. Dr. T. P. Satterwhite: Dr. Grant has given us a splendid paper, but I do not believe there is any incentive for the medical examiner to carry out all the details he has mentioned. As a rule, insurance companies want the business and they do not care very much how they get it. If the medical examiner was as careful as Dr. Grant would have him, he would be shipped, to a dead moral certainty. In the first place, the agent will not bring applicants to an examiner who conscientiously examines each one in the interest of the company; consequently, he will find his examinations growing less and less until he is virtually out of the business. I agree with Dr. Irwin in regard to the tenor of Dr. Grant's paper. Of course, he did not mean that we should put down on the blank every little detail the applicant tells us and send it in to the medical director; that is ridiculous; it would take a quire of paper for each examination. When the medical director appoints an examiner he is usually a physician of standing in his community and enjoys the entire confidence of the medical director. I feel that way about it and I know I am not alone in the belief. Dr...