Making the Right Decision: Benjamin Franklin in 1736
2007
This paper applies a decision analytic approach to a past decision made by Benjamin Franklin with regard to inoculating his son against smallpox. Benjamin Franklin in his autobiography said: “In 1736 I lost one of my sons, a fine boy of four years old, by the smallpox taken in the common way. I long regretted bitterly and still regret that I had not given it to him by inoculation. This I mention for the sake of the parents who omit that operation, on the supposition that they should never forgive themselves if a child died under it; my example showing that the regret may be the same either way, and that, therefore, the safer should be chosen.” Good medical care requires making the right decisions—to test, treat or do nothing—in the face of uncertainty. Franklin came to believe he made the wrong decision to forgo smallpox inoculation for his son in 1736. We have enough information about Franklin’s decision, made over a quarter of a millennium ago, to evaluate his choice.
Making the Right Decision: Benjamin Franklin in 1736
Source:
Best M, Neuhauser D. Making the Right Decision: Benjamin Franklin's Son Dies of Smallpox in 1736. BMJ 2007; 16 (6): 478–480. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2653186