Over the weekend, we Like Something the Lord Made, a movie about the life of Dr. Vivien Thomas, a man who overcame racism and poverty to help pioneer innovative techniques in heart surgery. It is an amazing story, one that includes a glimpse into America's segregated past, as well as the strength and resolve of Dr. Thomas and his family. The movie provides a realistic view of innovation in surgical research, as well as the personal courage and self-sacrifice such work takes on all involved.
In addition, there is a small role in the movie for Dr. Helen Taussig, a Cliffie (Hurrah! - Radcliffe, Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins) who had dyslexia and was also a champion tennis player, and had quite dramatic pioneering work herself in the field of pediatric cardiology. She lost her hearing by the time she had graduated from Hopkins and relied on lip reading and hearing aids, but "some of her innovations in pediatric cardiology have been attributed to her ability to distinguish the rhythms of normal and damged hearts by touch, rather than by sound."
For families: Despite the title, this is not a "Christian movie" and there is some mild profanity uttered by the chief of surgery (Blalock).
Vivien Thomas
Wikipedia: Something the Lord Made
Movie Review: Something the Lord Had Made
About Dr. Helen Taussig
Drs. Eide,
ReplyDeleteI'm using this film in a social justice course very soon. It would be great if you would be willing to share your thoughts about possible discussion questions on the broad topics.
I hope you'll check out my post at
http://halfirishrover.blogspot.com/2009/01/discussing-social-justice-matters-of.html and leave a comment.
Thanks!