Father Damien: An Open Letter to the Reverend Dr Hyde of Honolulu
BMJ 2011; 343 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.d4417 (Published 13 July 2011) Cite this as: BMJ 2011;343:d4417- Barry Newport, sessional general practitioner
- barry.newport{at}yahoo.co.uk
In 1889, Robert Louis Stevenson made a seven day visit to a leper colony on the small Hawaiian island of Molokai. It was a harrowing and deeply moving experience. Stevenson interviewed many people about a Belgian Catholic priest known as Father Damien, who spent the last 16 years of his life among the lepers, improving their conditions by helping to build cottages and a chapel, as well as ministering to their spiritual and medical needs. Eventually Father Damien contracted leprosy himself, dying at the age of 49, one month before Stevenson’s …
Log in
Log in using your username and password
Log in through your institution
Subscribe from £138 *
Subscribe and get access to all BMJ articles, and much more.
* For online subscription
Access this article for 1 day for:
£23 / $37 / €30 (inc. VAT)
You can download a PDF version for your personal record.