The weakening of the Oslerian tradition. The changing emphasis in departments of medicine.

SIR William Osler, in his speech on "Teacher and Student" in 1892, said "an academic system without the personal influence of teachers upon pupils, is an arctic winter; it will create an ice bound, petrified, cast-iron university, and nothing else." 1 A generation or two ago, the professor of medicine was molded on the rational and humanistic Oslerian tradition. The essential characteristics of the teacher of medicine were a concern for students and patients and a broad knowledge of clinical medicine. Concern for the patient was a prime responsibility, on a one-to-one basis in a bond of ego and morality that placed the internist as the first arbiter between dissolution and death. The patient was an individual, and the interaction could transcend readily into concerns for economic, family, and emotional factors. The student and house staff were equally involved as people fascinated by the professor's knowledge and performance. The peer