Why is history important at Mayo Clinic?
Mayo Clinic’s rich history provides perspective that can inform decision making across the organization. It’s valuable to have a sense of our past as we look to the future. I see a link between recording a patient’s medical history and documenting Mayo Clinic’s own medical history. Think about what doctors do when a patient presents with a problem. First we take a history from the patient. This unique information helps us decide what to do next as we chart a patient’s path to better health. We document this history in the medical record so future caregivers can benefit from what we learned today. The same principle applies to the history of medicine. We must continue to collect and preserve Mayo Clinic’s history so future leaders and staff understand why and how the institution introduced so many important innovations in patient care, research and education. History is a living phenomenon. Today’s decisions and actions become tomorrow’s history.
