To study the phenomena of disease without books is to sail an uncharted sea, while to study books without patients is not to go to sea at all. William Osler More Quotes by William Osler More Quotes From William Osler To have a group of cloistered clinicians away completely from the broad current of professional life would be bad for teacher and worse for student. The primary work of a professor of medicine in a medical school is in the wards, teaching his pupils how to deal with patients and their diseases. William Osler teaching teacher school As it can be maintained that all the great advances have come from men under forty, so the history of the world shows that a very large proportion of the evils may be traced to the sexagenarians, nearly all the great mistakes politically and socially, all of the worst poems, most of the bad pictures, a majority of the bad novels and not a few of the bad sermons and speeches. William Osler evil mistake men There is no more difficult art to acquire than the art of observation, and for some men it is quite as difficult to record an observation in brief and plain language. William Osler plain-language men art Few diseases present greater difficulties in the way of diagnosis than malignant endocarditis, difficulties which in many cases are practi- cally insurmountable. It is no disparagement to the many skilled physicians who have put their cases upon record to say that, in fully one-half the diagnosis was made post mortem. William Osler physicians records half Jaundice is the disease that your friends diagnose. William Osler jaundice disease The uselessness of men above sixty years of age and the incalculable benefit it would be in commercial, in political, and in professional life, if as a matter of course, men stopped work at this age. William Osler work men years The teacher's life should have three periods, study until twenty-five, investigation until forty, profession until sixty, at which age I would have him retired on a double allowance. William Osler should-have age teacher Start at once a bedside library and spend the last half hour of the day in communion with the saints of humanity. William Osler library saint humanity The very first step toward success in any occupation is to become interested in it. Locke put this in a very happy way when he said, give a pupil "a relish of knowledge" and you put life into his work. William Osler giving way knowledge No bubble is so iridescent or floats longer than that blown by the successful teacher. William Osler successful teaching teacher There is no disease more conducive to clinical humility than aneurysm of the aorta. William Osler clinicals disease humility Courage and cheerfulness will not only carry you over the rough places in life, but will enable you to bring comfort and help to the weak-hearted and will console you in the sad hours. William Osler sad comfort helping Work is the open sesame of every portal, the great equalizer in the world, the true philosopher's stone which transmutes all the base metal of humanity into gold. William Osler gold humanity world Nature, the great Moloch, which exacts a frightful tax of human blood, sparing neither young nor old; taking the child from the cradle, the mother from her babe, and the father from the family. William Osler nature mother children Taking a lady's hand gives her confidence in her physician. William Osler physicians giving hands Half of us are blind, few of us feel, and we are all deaf. William Osler deaf blind half Look wise, say nothing, and grunt. Speech was given to conceal thought. William Osler wise science looks He who knows syphilis knows medicine William Osler know-me syphilis medicine Now the way of life that I preach is a habit to be acquired gradually by long and steady repetition. It is the practice of living for the day only, and for the day's work. William Osler practice long way Shut out all of your past except that which will help you weather your tomorrows. William Osler helping weather past
