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Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Kim, DT; Curlin, FA; Wolenberg, KM; Sulmasy, DP
Published in: Acad Med
December 2014

U.S. medical scholarship and education regarding religion and spirituality has been growing rapidly in recent years. This rising interest, however, is not new; it is a renewal of significant interweavings that date back to the mid-20th century. In this Perspective, the authors draw attention to the little-known history of organized medicine's engagement with religion from 1961 to 1974. Relying on primary source documents, they recount the dramatic rise and fall of the Committee on Medicine and Religion (CMR) at the American Medical Association (AMA). At its height, there were state-level committees on medicine and religion in 49 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, and there were county-level committees in over 800 county medical societies. Thousands of physicians attended annual conferences for clinicians and clergy, and direct outreach to patients included a film viewed by millions. The CMR arose in the context of rapid medical advances, the growth of professional chaplaincy, and concern for declining "humanism" in medicine-conditions with parallels in medicine today. The CMR was brought to a puzzling end in 1972 by the AMA's Board of Trustees. The authors argue that this termination was linked to the AMA's long and contentious debate on abortion. They conclude with the story's significance for today's explorations of the intersection of spirituality, religion, and medicine, focusing on the need for mutual respect, transparency, and dialogue around the needs of patients and physicians.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Acad Med

DOI

EISSN

1938-808X

Publication Date

December 2014

Volume

89

Issue

12

Start / End Page

1603 / 1609

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Spirituality
  • Religion and Medicine
  • Religion
  • Politics
  • Humans
  • History, 20th Century
  • General & Internal Medicine
  • Dissent and Disputes
  • Cooperative Behavior
 

Citation

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MLA
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Kim, D. T., Curlin, F. A., Wolenberg, K. M., & Sulmasy, D. P. (2014). Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974. Acad Med, 89(12), 1603–1609. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000000370
Kim, Daniel T., Farr A. Curlin, Kelly M. Wolenberg, and Daniel P. Sulmasy. “Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974.Acad Med 89, no. 12 (December 2014): 1603–9. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000000370.
Kim DT, Curlin FA, Wolenberg KM, Sulmasy DP. Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974. Acad Med. 2014 Dec;89(12):1603–9.
Kim, Daniel T., et al. “Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974.Acad Med, vol. 89, no. 12, Dec. 2014, pp. 1603–09. Pubmed, doi:10.1097/ACM.0000000000000370.
Kim DT, Curlin FA, Wolenberg KM, Sulmasy DP. Back to the future: The AMA and religion, 1961-1974. Acad Med. 2014 Dec;89(12):1603–1609.

Published In

Acad Med

DOI

EISSN

1938-808X

Publication Date

December 2014

Volume

89

Issue

12

Start / End Page

1603 / 1609

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Spirituality
  • Religion and Medicine
  • Religion
  • Politics
  • Humans
  • History, 20th Century
  • General & Internal Medicine
  • Dissent and Disputes
  • Cooperative Behavior