A letter to George Renny ... on the feigned diseases of soldiers / by John Cheyne.

Date:
1826
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A letter to George Renny ... on the feigned diseases of soldiers / by John Cheyne. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    were vomited, discharged from the bowels, or bladder, which were not the product of any animal process. A similar caprice will often influence the conduct of the soldier, who, without any ulterior object, will experience some unaccoun- table gratification in deceiving his officers, com- rades, or surgeon. i - • - . . L . , • When a soldier is suspected of malingering, the medical officer ought to conceal his suspicions until they are confirmed or removed. He will then have all the advantage of seeing the sus- pected party under a variety of circumstances favourable to cool investigation. His arrange- ments should be such as to enable him to detect fraud ; his hospital serjeant and orderlies men on whom he can depend. By a prudent course the malingerer may be led to change his procedure, which he will sometimes do when the medical officer, while he does not deny the existence of the alleged complaint, appears to underrate its importance; thus a soldier who had hoped to obtain his discharge by simulating rheumatism, has been led to add haemoptysis to his complaints, upon which the deceit becoming apparent, there was no difficulty in exposing the fraud, and forcing him to return to his duty. A regimental surgeon once told me that he often appears to give credit to all that the malingerer relates of his com- plaint, and puts questions unconnected with the pretended symptoms, and that it has thus fre- quently happened that the view which he seemed