The Prairie Doc: Laughter is the Best Medicine

It is often said that laughter is the best medicine, yet I have never written a prescription for a funny movie, or a television comedy show, and I have no clowns or rubber chickens in my office. On the contrary, doctors are often expected to be serious and professional. Perhaps we are missing a great opportunity to help heal. What if more doctors were like Dr. Patch Adams, who is known by the medical community for his quest to inject humor and laughter into the treatment of patients?

In medicine we work to cure disease. To cure means “to eliminate all evidence of disease.” However, there is a...