Jam-packed doorways, aisles and seats held more than 150 people last night to hear Patch Adams’ lecture on caring for patients for more than just their money in the College of Pharmacy’s Skaggs Auditorium.
Adams-who has been lecturing for 21 years-agreed to speak at the U last night for a fourth of the price he usually charges.
President of the Compassionate Care group at the U, Markum McReynolds, raised $3,500 to bring Adams to the U.
“Patch Adams was generous enough to come here, even though we didn’t raise enough money,” McReynolds said.
The money will go to Adams’ practice, called the Gesundheit! Institute.
Practicing only free medicine, Adams feels that medicine doesn’t have to be the way it is, but rather the way you make it.
“My mother taught me that love is the most important thing,” Adams said. “I haven’t charged a cent in 33 years of medicine.”
Having been hospitalized three times in psychiatric units at the age of 17, Adams’ unpleasant treatment made him realize doctors should practice medicine out of love, and not money.
“I couldn’t believe how adults behaved,” Adams said. “My last hospitalization, I decided to live relentlessly to serve medicine.”
Adams graduated from medical school in 1971 and opened his own six-bedroom hospital.
The Gesundheit! Institute, which included six other employees, welcomed any patient, young or old, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“We would have five to 50 patients stay overnight,” Adams said.
Some of the patients, Adams said, were violent, disturbed and dangerous.
“Our only rule was patients could not hurt anyone,” Adams said.
Adams’ closest friend and co-worker was murdered by a patient, but Adams and his colleagues continued the practice.
“We wanted our patients to experience a sense of belonging,” Adams said. “Our goal was to eliminate the sense that the patient owed something.”
Malpractice insurance isn’t in Patch Adams’ vocabulary. He said malpractice insurance is like telling patients you don’t trust them.
“Either you practice and make mistakes, or you don’t practice,” he said.
Adams has dressed in clown attire for 25 years to entertain and help patients laugh.
“I’m a clown that is a doctor, not a doctor who is a clown,” he said.
According to Adams, a mother who has heard her child scream for weeks or even months would find that Adams’ sense of humor and entertainment would ease children’s pain without the pain medications.
“It’s the art of distraction, without the pain meds,” he said.
Eleven years ago, Adams opened orphanages that accommodated more than 300 kids.
“We would adopt the children at age 10, when orphanages in St. Petersburg would sell them to make a profit,” Adams said.
Along with free medical care, the Gesundheit! Institute helps single parents find jobs while the hospital employees take care of their kids.
“We insist on connecting politics, economics and environment with health issues,” Adams said.
The hospital received no donations in the first 12 years of service.
Adams also did not get any money from the motion picture “Patch Adams,” which starred Robin Williams as Adams.
A new hospital to be built in the near future will include 60 beds.
Thousands of doctors and nurses apply every year to make $3,000 a year to work at the institute.
“I have never been burned out,” Adams said. “Good health is living a healthy, exuberant life on a normal day. Anyone can learn to love.”