Abstract
What would Thomas Wakley, who founded The Lancet in 1823, make of medicine today? Progress over the past two centuries has been remarkable. Antiseptics and anaesthetics in surgery, life-saving devices and drugs, childhood and adult immunisation, the development of clinical trials, and digital health care are just a few of the advances that have improved patients’ lives. There has also been increased scrutiny of medical power, including medical paternalism, the colonial foundations of global health, the inequities of race-based medicine, and medical misogyny. Yet some principles have remained consistent despite the passage of time: trust between health-care professionals and patients, and the importance of respectful, compassionate care. In this 200th anniversary year of The Lancet, a journal that has reflected and shaped the changing medical landscape, we invite submissions for our annual essay competition, the Wakley Prize.
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