Who are some doctors who are renowned for their work outside the field of medicine?
February 7, 2011 8:49 AM Subscribe
Who are some doctors who are renowned for their work outside the field of medicine?
Medicine is a famously time-consuming profession and field of study. I'd like some examples of physicians who have also found time to excel in other areas. Including but not limited to: the arts, sports, the humanities, literature, or sciences outside of biology and medicine.
Thanks!
Medicine is a famously time-consuming profession and field of study. I'd like some examples of physicians who have also found time to excel in other areas. Including but not limited to: the arts, sports, the humanities, literature, or sciences outside of biology and medicine.
Thanks!
Michael Crichton.
Plus all those TV doctors on CNN etc.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 8:51 AM on February 7, 2011
Plus all those TV doctors on CNN etc.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 8:51 AM on February 7, 2011
Not sure if this counts, but there's Paul Farmer.
posted by alms at 8:55 AM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by alms at 8:55 AM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
There are 19 doctors in the U.S. Congress, and a former Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist, was a doctor as well.
posted by googly at 8:58 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by googly at 8:58 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Well, I wouldn't call it excelling, but Rand Paul is an MD.
posted by msk1985 at 8:58 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by msk1985 at 8:58 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Anton Chekhov
posted by milarepa at 9:05 AM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by milarepa at 9:05 AM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]
See Wikipedia's List of physicians, which has sections for those famous as criminals, writers, politicians, or for other reasons.
posted by James Scott-Brown at 9:06 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by James Scott-Brown at 9:06 AM on February 7, 2011
Pope John XXI
Al-Zawahri
Arthur Conan Doyle
Keats
John Kellogg
Stanislaw Lem
posted by rokusan at 9:06 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Al-Zawahri
Arthur Conan Doyle
Keats
John Kellogg
Stanislaw Lem
posted by rokusan at 9:06 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
W. Somerset Maugham trained as a doctor, but never actually practised as one.
posted by HandfulOfDust at 9:07 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by HandfulOfDust at 9:07 AM on February 7, 2011
Ken Jeong, of Community and The Hangover fame.
posted by auto-correct at 9:08 AM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by auto-correct at 9:08 AM on February 7, 2011 [3 favorites]
Oliver Sacks.
posted by matildaben at 9:16 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by matildaben at 9:16 AM on February 7, 2011
The founders of MacRumors.com and GM-Volt.com (both fairly prominent blogs, particularly the former) are doctors, although the founder of MacRumors.com, Arnold Kim, quit his nephrology practice to work full time on the blog a few years ago. The founder of GM-Volt.com is still a practicing neurologist.
posted by jedicus at 9:16 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by jedicus at 9:16 AM on February 7, 2011
My snarky answer is Freud.
Seconding Stanislaw Lem, whose His Master's Voice is next on my fiction reading list.
posted by phrontist at 9:18 AM on February 7, 2011
Seconding Stanislaw Lem, whose His Master's Voice is next on my fiction reading list.
posted by phrontist at 9:18 AM on February 7, 2011
Oliver Sacks, the neurologist.
James Herriot, the veterinarian.
Their creative work uses their work in medicine as material.
posted by Ventre Mou at 9:20 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
James Herriot, the veterinarian.
Their creative work uses their work in medicine as material.
posted by Ventre Mou at 9:20 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Vincent Lam, author of the short story collection Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures.
posted by sea change at 9:30 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by sea change at 9:30 AM on February 7, 2011
Gold-medal winner Dot Richardson took a leave of absence from an orthopedic residency program to compete in the Olympics.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 9:39 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 9:39 AM on February 7, 2011
Depending on how you define "excel", Bashar al-Assad of Syria might count, though it looks like he just missed completion of his formal training in ophthalmology.
posted by jquinby at 9:44 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by jquinby at 9:44 AM on February 7, 2011
Story Musgrave, surgeon and astronaut, possibly the real-life Buckaroo Banzai. Minus the rock band.
posted by mkb at 9:47 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by mkb at 9:47 AM on February 7, 2011
Roger Bannister: first 4 minute mile
Mike Stroud: polar explorer
(and both have written books about their experiences).
posted by AFII at 9:49 AM on February 7, 2011
Mike Stroud: polar explorer
(and both have written books about their experiences).
posted by AFII at 9:49 AM on February 7, 2011
Eric Heiden
posted by lpsguy at 9:57 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by lpsguy at 9:57 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
H.H. Holmes was very successful in his chosen hobbies.
posted by Faint of Butt at 9:59 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Faint of Butt at 9:59 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
posted by bardophile at 10:05 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by bardophile at 10:05 AM on February 7, 2011
Boris Pasternak, author of Dr. Zhivago.
posted by orange swan at 10:05 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by orange swan at 10:05 AM on February 7, 2011
Many physicians are engaged in research in addition to their clinical duties. Frequently, this research will span areas of humanities or social sciences that are somewhat related to, or intersect with, their medical interests. I didn't really have any idea how common this was until I started working for the a place called "The Center for Health & the Social Sciences", which sort of focuses on this exact thing. My impression is that the doctors we work with do clinical rotations and their levels of busy-ness are kind of cyclical and split between seeing patients and working on research projects.
posted by booknerd at 10:11 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by booknerd at 10:11 AM on February 7, 2011
Ben Goldacre? Writer and general battler against bad science in the media.
posted by corvine at 10:27 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by corvine at 10:27 AM on February 7, 2011
Doctor Livingstone, I presume.
Along with violinist and composer Fritz Kreisler
posted by drlith at 10:37 AM on February 7, 2011
Along with violinist and composer Fritz Kreisler
posted by drlith at 10:37 AM on February 7, 2011
on the political front, there's Che Guevara and Norman Bethune.
posted by Joad at 10:44 AM on February 7, 2011
posted by Joad at 10:44 AM on February 7, 2011
A list of Doctors who are also authors from the British Medical Association.
(To be fair, a few of the people listed so far weren't exactly practicing doctors while they excelled in other fields - Conan Doyle certainly wasn't rushed off his feet with patients, and Keats quit his surgeon-apothecary career to write).
posted by AFII at 10:44 AM on February 7, 2011
(To be fair, a few of the people listed so far weren't exactly practicing doctors while they excelled in other fields - Conan Doyle certainly wasn't rushed off his feet with patients, and Keats quit his surgeon-apothecary career to write).
posted by AFII at 10:44 AM on February 7, 2011
Ray Muzyka, co- founder of the videogame company Bioware, has an MD from the University of Alberta.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 11:16 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by BitterOldPunk at 11:16 AM on February 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
John Henry "Doc" Holliday was more famous for gunfighting than dentistry.
posted by Jamesonian at 12:35 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by Jamesonian at 12:35 PM on February 7, 2011
Vascular surgeon Dale Chase was an innovative woodworker who made the most amazing boxes.
posted by spasm at 1:00 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by spasm at 1:00 PM on February 7, 2011
- Louis-Ferdinand Céline, the controversial author of Journey to the End of the Night. He apparently kept practicing medicine even after he became a literary figure.
- Not clear if he practiced: Claude Jutra, canadian film director, who made Mon oncle Antoine.
- Jacques Ferron, Canadian author, founder of the Rhinoceros Party.
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 1:24 PM on February 7, 2011
Robin Cook (author of Coma and many other medical thrillers). Perri Klass.
posted by sdn at 5:51 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by sdn at 5:51 PM on February 7, 2011
Deniz Tek, rock star and fighter pilot. He paints and sculpts, too.
posted by Scram at 11:01 PM on February 7, 2011
posted by Scram at 11:01 PM on February 7, 2011
Rob Gendler's astronomical photographs deserve notice.
posted by Protocols of the Elders of Sockpuppetry at 10:53 PM on February 8, 2011
posted by Protocols of the Elders of Sockpuppetry at 10:53 PM on February 8, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by craichead at 8:50 AM on February 7, 2011 [2 favorites]