Osler and ophthalmology

Abstract

Sir William Osier (1849–1919) has been called the father of American medicine (Fig. 1). This Canadian from Dundas, Ontario is remembered as a great clinician, scientist and teacher*. His name survives as a burden for medical students and forgetful clinicians who must distinguish between the Osler-Weber-Rendu disease, the Osler-Vasquez disease, the Osler phenomenon, the Osler sign, Osler’s triad, and of course Osler’s nodes. Nevertheless, his most enduring contributions probably lie in the structures he imposed on medical education and medical practice. He was an active, but gentle reformer with an abiding affection for medical students and for the common physician engaged in general practice. He was instrumental in organizing a system where American medical students would first obtain a general education before going to medical school. He also changed the nature of the medical curriculum to include significant clinical experience — allowing students to actually examine and care for patients on the wards. To his credit, the institutions which he established in medical education have survived largely unchanged to the present day. In addition, he wrote The Principles and Practice of Medicine (1892) a seminal textbook that served as the standard reference for generations of physicians. Nevertheless, before he had done any of these things, the young Willie Osler had different plans.