Voices
DR. KAREN S.
ROMMELFANGER
HUFFINGTON
07.01-08.12
Take Two
Placebo Pills
and Call Me in
the Morning
J
ANE HAS SUFFERED from debilitating headaches
for the past year. After a number of referrals, and no
medical explanation for her headaches, she meets Dr.
Smith, who prescribes her 100mg of Vitamin X. Dr.
Smith tells her that, “This has helped others with
your condition.” ¶ Finally experiencing relief from
her headaches, Jane says, “This is the best I’ve felt in
years. Vitamin X is a miracle cure.” When Dr. Smith is
asked by his colleague about the prescription for Vitamin X and Jane’s recovery, Dr. Smith says, “I don’t
know why it worked. Vitamin X doesn’t cure headaches, but I thought she might get better if I just prescribed her something, and I didn’t think it would hurt
for her to have some extra Vitamin X in her diet.”
ILLUSTRATION BY SCOTT MENCHIN
Karen S.
Rommelfanger
is the Assistant
Director of the
Neuroethics
Program at the
Emory Center
for Ethics