On the first day of 2019 we lost a hero of American medicine, Curtis Webb Caine, Sr., M.D.
Funeral and Celebration of Life service information is available here.
President of AAPS in 1980-1981, Dr. Caine, joined the organization in 1949, and was our longest active member.
For our 75th Annual Meeting this past October, Dr. Caine recorded a special message (video | text) about saving American medicine.
In addition to 60 years of service to patients as an anesthesiologist, Dr. Caine was a Constitutional scholar who wrote prolifically on this topic. His writings included a 34-article series on the U.S. Constitution published in the Medical Sentinel, the precursor to the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons.
Dr. Caine’s 1966 letter to colleagues correctly predicted the damage the imposition of Medicare would inflict on the practice of medicine and the primacy of the patient-physician relationship. He wrote:
The practice of medicine involves only two people—the patient and his physician. Any third party is an intruder that dilutes and divides the loyalties and responsibilities inherent in patient-physician obligations.
And he encouraged American physicians to act:
What the future holds for you, your profession, the health of your patients, and the very survival of the Republic rest in your hands.
Help honor Dr. Caine by carrying on his legacy of fighting for “the only entity that matters,” as he put it, THE PATIENT.
