April 2013 VOLUME XXXVII NO. 6
Presidential Viewpoints Gregory M. Christiansen, D.O., M.Ed., FACOEP
The History of Our Future
Almost 100 years ago, Robert Frost remarked upon the road less traveled. The poem’s simplicity conveys a powerful message of inspiration, discovery and leadership. It timelessly resonates with those bold enough to ponder the possibilities. As osteopathic physicians, you already know the value of a road less traveled. The path we chose was arduous, but it gave us the ability to uniquely better serve our patients. It is in this vein that ACOEP has promoted leadership development. Leadership has been a priority for our college as we offer our members opportunities to take us to the future. It is with great pride that I reflect on our members’ success. Their service to their patients and profession has put osteopathic medicine at the forefront and now the world wants to learn more. We are not a secret anymore and the path we have chosen is leading others to seek our view of the future. I am sure you personally know outstanding physician leaders who we would all want to emulate. These
role models at all levels of our profession are the leaders we look up to. These leaders demonstrate the values of service, dedication and ingenuity. In discovering these great leaders it might be interesting to trace where they came from. Our success can be traced back to our training and our willingness to boldly go down the road less traveled. But what do you know of physicians who boldly stepped forward so that society would be served lofty values of patient independence, freedom and truth. Let me offer a brief review of physician leaders who set the example by their character to do what is best for our patients and the society we serve. You may know the story of Paul Revere’s ride made legend by famed write Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in Tales of a Wayside Inn. But do you know the real story? It’s a story that, at a veiled level, may be more important than the actual story itself, for it highlights the character and characteristics of real leaders. These attributes of our patriotic forefathers over 200 years ago are the same attributes we can find among our physician ranks today. The story, in a nut shell, begins with Paul Revere and William Dawes. They were tasked by Joseph Warren with warning the colonists of an impending attack upon the village of Concorde as the King of England attempted to impose his tyrannical rule. Revere’s story was fabled by the poem which eloquently captured the daring midnight ride. But did you know Paul Revere did not get to complete
The PULSE APRIL 2013
the mythical ride? Only an hour into the foray, Revere was captured and later killed by the British military. The success of that ride was actually due in no small part to a patriot named Samuel Prescott. It was this physician, Dr. Samuel Prescott, who took up the task and skillfully evaded the pursuing British troops from Lexington all the way to Concord. He alerted the Minutemen and Militia of an impending attack and saved the revolution’s precious military depot. Prescott went on to work as a surgeon for the revolution before being captured later in the war. The planning and foresight of the ride was the work of another doctor, Dr. Joseph Warren. You may already be familiar with Dr. Warren. 14 states have named a county after him in his honor. Additionally, 30 towns, five naval warships and one fort have borne his name. To give you some background, Dr. Warren was appointed to the Boston Committee of Correspondence and later the President of the Massachusetts Provisional Congress – the highest position in the revolutionary government. In the build-up to the revolution, he and Dr. Benjamin Church were the last two officials to stay in Boston during the British occupation. From here Dr. Warren drafted the Suffolk Resolve and supported the resistance to Parliament’s Coercive Acts – documents considered by most historians as major factors in the development of the Declaration of continued on page 6
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