Uncommon wisdom from a family physician and medical educator

On Becoming a Healer

Simon Auster, MD, was a family physician, psychiatrist, and medical educator who had extraordinary insight about practicing medicine but absolutely zero interest in drawing attention to himself. His students and patients had the good fortune of having him as their teacher or doctor but far too few have benefited from his wisdom. Today we discuss some of Simon's saying's -- "Simonisms" -- that are remarkable because they are not the usual cliches one hears. Some challenge us to reconsider our assumptions. We share and discuss them because we believe they can help many doctors, those in training, and those who train them find more joy and meaning in their work. You can learn about Simon in an online (open access) essay about his life, published in The Pharos, the journal of the AOA medical honor society.