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Matthew Walker, Sr, MD,FAC (1 906.1 978) A Tribute Axel C. Hansen, MD, FACS Nashville, Tennessee
Robert Louis Stevenson said of the
physician:
There are men and classes of men that stand above the common herd; the soldier, the sailor, and the shepherd not infrequently; the artist rarely; rarer still, the clergyman; the physician almost as a rule. He is the flowet (such as it is) of our civilization.... Generosity he has as is possible to those who practice an art, never to those who drive a trade; discretion tested by a hundred secrets, tact tried in a thousand embarrassments; and, what are more important, Herculean cheerfulness and courage. So that he brings air and cheer into the sickroom, and often enough, though not as often as he wishes, brings healing.
All of these qualities were embodied in the person of the late Matthew Walker, MD. His generosity was boundless, as was evidenced by his concern for people, especially the disadvantaged and the underprivileged. It was this
Dr. Hansen is Professor and Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee. Requests for reprints should be addressed to Dr. Axel C. Hansen, Department of Ophthalmology, George W. HUbbard Hospital. Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208.
generosity that sparked in his mind the idea of a neighborhood health center in Nashville which today bears his name. He skillfully employed his discretion in many areas. At Meharry Medical College, which he served for more than 40 years, he frequently had knowledge of administrative discussions when decisions were being made. However, when these decrees were officially announced, and subsequently conveyed to him by his colleagues, his reply was always, "Is that so?" His tact was superb and made him a "natural" for involvement in positions of trust, where the less diplomatic and the more militant may have accomplished naught. This quality made him an invaluable member of the Metropolitan Nashville Board of Hospital Commissioners where he helped arbitrate the desires and demands of all segments of the Nashville community for limited dollars and hospital beds. Cheerfulness was a part of his daily life and was verbalized through expressions which linked him with his rural roots. Of courage, it may be said that he had an abundant supply-in the operating room and beyond. When, for ex-
JOURNAL OF THE NATIONAL MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, VOL. 71, NO. 5, 1979
ample, he was rescued from a drifting, powerless boat on a lake late one night, he voiced confidence in the fact that he knew he would be found, saying he was never afraid. Later, he told how he enjoyed the sound of fish jumping and frogs croaking as he drifted alone in the darkness of the night. He brought healing to thousands of people and many travelled great distances to seek his professional services. Matthew Walker's effectiveness and guidance as a teacher, his generosity as a human being, and his skill as a surgeon will long be remembered by his
beneficiaries. On his death, I was prompted to compose the following lines: The Great Almighty has pronounced His will, The hand that held the healing knife is still, The mind that shaped a thousand minds is gone, The night is o'er, his soul awaits the Dawn. But since he gave his life the young to teach, Ten thousand more will come within his reach, And many well-trained hands and minds live on To cure the sick and teach the yet unborn.
So let's not sit and mourn that he has passed, Forhe still breathes in those whose lives he cast; Join hands to raise the task that he began And learn through him that ifwe work, we can! 433
;:0
%g
Matthew Walker, Sr, MD,FAC (1 906.1 978) A Tribute Axel C. Hansen, MD, FACS Nashville, Tennessee
Robert Louis Stevenson said of the
physician:
There are men and classes of men that stand above the common herd; the soldier, the sailor, and the shepherd not infrequently; the artist rarely; rarer still, the clergyman; the physician almost as a rule. He is the flowet (such as it is) of our civilization.... Generosity he has as is possible to those who practice an art, never to those who drive a trade; discretion tested by a hundred secrets, tact tried in a thousand embarrassments; and, what are more important, Herculean cheerfulness and courage. So that he brings air and cheer into the sickroom, and often enough, though not as often as he wishes, brings healing.
All of these qualities were embodied in the person of the late Matthew Walker, MD. His generosity was boundless, as was evidenced by his concern for people, especially the disadvantaged and the underprivileged. It was this
Dr. Hansen is Professor and Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee. Requests for reprints should be addressed to Dr. Axel C. Hansen, Department of Ophthalmology, George W. HUbbard Hospital. Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208.
generosity that sparked in his mind the idea of a neighborhood health center in Nashville which today bears his name. He skillfully employed his discretion in many areas. At Meharry Medical College, which he served for more than 40 years, he frequently had knowledge of administrative discussions when decisions were being made. However, when these decrees were officially announced, and subsequently conveyed to him by his colleagues, his reply was always, "Is that so?" His tact was superb and made him a "natural" for involvement in positions of trust, where the less diplomatic and the more militant may have accomplished naught. This quality made him an invaluable member of the Metropolitan Nashville Board of Hospital Commissioners where he helped arbitrate the desires and demands of all segments of the Nashville community for limited dollars and hospital beds. Cheerfulness was a part of his daily life and was verbalized through expressions which linked him with his rural roots. Of courage, it may be said that he had an abundant supply-in the operating room and beyond. When, for ex-
JOURNAL OF THE NATIONAL MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, VOL. 71, NO. 5, 1979
ample, he was rescued from a drifting, powerless boat on a lake late one night, he voiced confidence in the fact that he knew he would be found, saying he was never afraid. Later, he told how he enjoyed the sound of fish jumping and frogs croaking as he drifted alone in the darkness of the night. He brought healing to thousands of people and many travelled great distances to seek his professional services. Matthew Walker's effectiveness and guidance as a teacher, his generosity as a human being, and his skill as a surgeon will long be remembered by his
beneficiaries. On his death, I was prompted to compose the following lines: The Great Almighty has pronounced His will, The hand that held the healing knife is still, The mind that shaped a thousand minds is gone, The night is o'er, his soul awaits the Dawn. But since he gave his life the young to teach, Ten thousand more will come within his reach, And many well-trained hands and minds live on To cure the sick and teach the yet unborn.
So let's not sit and mourn that he has passed, Forhe still breathes in those whose lives he cast; Join hands to raise the task that he began And learn through him that ifwe work, we can! 433
