Caducean Society Popular With Med Students of 1930s
Since the early days of the Creighton University School of Medicine, part of the medical student experience has been membership in one or more of a number of groups organized by students to delve deeper into some aspect of the study of medicine. 
The Medical Forum, organized in 1934, provided a venue in which students could discuss the social, economic and ethical problems of the day and their relationship to medicine. The Journal Club was organized in 1939, and met Fridays at noon. After a short lunch, members discussed medical literature of significant importance.
A medical debating team - though possibly not an officially organized club - was active in the early 1930s and is said to have argued against a team from the Law School. The supposed topic: "Does medicine or law require the higher character?" According to a 1932 Creightonian, the debates of the time transpired before packed audiences in the University auditorium.
But it was the Caducean Society - founded in 1931 and named for the winged staff of Mercury with its intertwining serpents - that reached beyond medicine and encouraged members to discuss the cultural pursuits of art, music and literature. A reference in the 1931 Bluejay cites Creighton as being one of only four medical schools in the country to have a Caducean Society, the others being Johns Hopkins, The Mayo Clinic and Michigan Medical School. The club was organized by students of Dr. Charles M. Wilhelmj, who was voted an honorary member in 1940.
In 1935, membership in the Caducean Society was capped at 30 and by invitation only. Those seeking membership were required to research and present papers of historical interest. In 1939, the Society became affiliated with the American Association for the History of Medicine. History also links the Caducean Society with the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Membership in the Caducean Society waned during World War II but was revived in 1947, albeit somewhat unsuccessfully. A second revival was attempted in the mid-50s, but little is found about the Caducean Society at Creighton after 1955.
Today, clubs and organizations that offer students an opportunity to serve - such as Project CURA and the Magis Clinic - are among the more popular with Creighton medical students. Others include the Student National Medical Association and the American Medical Association.
-Includes information from A Century of Teaching and Healing, Boro and Mead, ©1991,Creighton University.
Photos from Creighton University Archives