The Five Founding Doctors -- Physicians Who Signed the Declaration of Independence
When most of us think about our Founding Founders, astute politicians probably come to mind. But five of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were physicians:
Benjamin Rush, served as a high-ranking surgeon in the Continental Army;
Matthew Thornton practiced in rural New Hampshire and inoculated himself against small pox.
Josiah Bartlett was a practicing physician who became governor of New Hampshire and pushed to crack down on quackery;
Lyman Hall was originally a dishonored preacher, who became a doctor and moved to Georgia;
Oliver Wolcott was trained as a doctor, but spent most of his life in public office.
Source: Wall Street Journal
And if you're dying to delve beyond the level of Trivial Pursuit, there's even a book on about the men -- Physician signers of the Declaration of Independence
Do you think more physicians should be involved in public office today? Would we move closer to a health care solution?
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As I head off to watch fireworks, I'll keep this in mind. Thanks for the great information. And yes, while not all doctors are well versed in governmental policy, I think they understand the day-to-day enough to at least advise and make recommendations. I would like to think that if more were involved in public office, greater emphasis might be placed on health care.
The irony is that at a time when we need physicians' knowledge the most, the number of doctors serving in public office has decreased significantly since the country's early years.
Only about 25, or about 1 percent, of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate who have served since 1960 have been doctors.
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