By Matthew Putnam, MD (D'74, Med'77)
Hanover, 1974. First year of med school. We gathered at the dorm to watch MASH, wanting to be Hawkeye Pierce. Almost all of us had avoided our war (Vietnam) by taking school deferments. Regardless, we watched, hoping that we'd become as experienced as the MASH team. But real experience doesn't come that easy.
After graduating in 1977, I completed orthopaedic training. Throughout the 1990s, I practiced medicine and taught at the University of Minnesota. Over the years, I made a few volunteer service contributions—including helping to build an orthopaedic service at the Polish-American Children's Hospital in Krakow. That was my "war time substitute" contribution.
Then came 9/11.
Read the full story in the latest issue of Dartmouth Medicine magazine...
