Patch Adams

This paper is a discussion of the film Patch Adams, directed by Tom Shadyac, and the concept of humor in medicine. This movie, based on a true story, tells about an unconventional medical student who believes that a substantial degree of suffering can be relieved through laughter. Research supports this idea, although many in the medical profession continue to believe that being an effective stand-up comedian is not a requirement for being an effective health care provider.

Patch Adams is the story of Hunter "Patch" Adams, played by Robin Williams. While seeking help for his suicidal depression in a mental hospital, Adams discovers that his compassion, empathy, and off-the-wall way of looking at life enable him to break through the defenses of some of the other patients. He leaves the institution and enters medical school, determined to use his gifts to help others.

Although he is a brilliant student, Adams finds medical school to be a disappointment. Professors emphasize the need to maintain distance from patients in order to develop the respect they feel is owed to doctors. Worse, students can have no contact with actual patients until the third year. Adams finds this unacceptable, and he begins visiting the wards on his own, entertaining patients with a series of comic antics and listening to their stories.

This brings him in direct conflict with Dean Walcott, a hard-nosed bureaucrat who is the school's most fervent believer in the sanctity of the medical pro

Related Essays

Patch Adams: humor as medicine This paper is a discussion of the film Patch Adams, directed by Tom Shadyac, and the concept of humor in medicine. This movie, based .... (1689 7 )

Marital Counseling & Christian Counselors .... According to Adams, couples hold several illusions abut marriage, illusions that are either derived .... for them; couples do not have to settle for a patch-up job. .... (8080 32 )

The Cry of the African Woman .... Like Hajila's desire of being in the outdoors, all these women simply want to enjoy "one patch of sky" (Djebar 78 .... Davies, Carol Boyce, and Anne Adams Graves, eds .... (5981 24 )

Mathematics Instruction .... In DB McLeod & VM Adams (Eds.), Affect and mathematical problem solving: A new perspective (pp .... for chain in order to enclose a 70 foot by 30 foot patch of ground .... (8817 35 )

Finding the Oppressed Voice in the African Female .... Like Hajila's desire of being in the outdoors, all these women simply want to enjoy "one patch of sky" (Djebar 78 .... Davies, Carol Boyce, and Anne Adams Graves, eds .... (8666 35 )

legs, making the entryway into an enormous vagina. Above the door hangs a sign reading, "Welcome, gynos! At your cervix." While Walcott is horrified by what he sees as a crass and undignified exhibition (and tries to use the prank to get Adams thrown out of school), at least a few of the doctors are amused, realizing the importance of having a sense of humor about their profession. The scene mirrors an earlier sequence in which Patch ends up at a meat packers' convention, seeing a large and rowdy group who are also proud of what they do but do not take their job so seriously. In another scene, Walcott finds Adams amusing a patient and his family by cavorting in a foldup bed, wearing a bright red rubber nose and squeaky clown shoes. When Walcott demands to know what Adams is doing, the student replies, "Just getting a few laughs, sir" (Shadyac), and then proceeds to tell him that the American Medical Journal has found laughter beneficial in increasing the secretion of endorphins, oxygenating the blood, and heightening the effectiveness of the immune system response. Walcott is furious but unable to refute Adams' recitation. Initially, Walcott's indignation is shared by Mitch, Adams' uptight roommate. Mitch comes from a

Category: Film - P