While his publications captured the mystique of the Wild West like a Western dime novel with a personal tincture of dark humor, Dr Goodfellow was an accomplished researcher and physician in the fields of surgery, urology, and anesthesia.
3,6 His colorful accounts of silk handkerchiefs and gunfights are not only fascinating but still relevant to saving lives well over a century later.
As an osteopathic medical student, I aspire to make impactful observations of my own. With today’s gun violence representing a major public health issue, it is important that we as future physicians use our education to improve the safety of all those in our communities. Unbiased, unpoliticized, evidence-based research related to gun safety would be beneficial. I may not become the next gunfighter’s surgeon, but as an osteopathic physician, I will be cognizant enough to observe the lessons of our past, present, and future to enhance the health care of our communities. (doi:10.7556/jaoa.2016.147)