National Doctors' Day is a day celebrated to recognize the contributions of physicians to individual lives and communities. The date varies from nation to nation depending on the event of commemoration used to mark the day. In some nations the day is marked as a holiday. Although supposed to be celebrated by patients in and benefactors of the healthcare industry, it is usually celebrated by health care organizations. Staff may organize a lunch for doctors during which physicians are presented with tokens of recognition. Historically, a card or red carnation may be sent to physicians and their spouses, along with a flower being placed on the graves of deceased physicians.

Celebrating nations

History

The first Doctors’ Day observance was March 28, 1933, in Winder, Georgia, United States. This first observance included the mailing of cards to the physicians and their wives, flowers placed on graves of deceased doctors, including Dr. Long, and a formal dinner in the home of Dr. and Mrs. William T. Randolph. After the Barrow County Alliance adopted Mrs. Almond's resolution to pay tribute to the doctors, the plan was presented to the Georgia State Medical Alliance in 1933 by Mrs. E. R. Harris of Winder, president of the Barrow County Alliance. On May 10, 1934, the resolution was adopted at the annual state meeting in Augusta, Georgia. The resolution was introduced to the Women's Alliance of the Southern Medical Association at its 29th annual meeting held in St. Louis, Missouri, November 19–22, 1935, by the Alliance president, Mrs. J. Bonar White. Since then, Doctors' Day has become an integral part of and synonymous with, the Southern Medical Association Alliance. The United States Senate and House of Representatives passed S.J. RES. #366 during the 101st United States Congress, which President Bush signed on October 30, 1990 (creating Public Law 101-473), designating Doctors' Day as a national holiday to be celebrated on March 30. Dr. Marion Mass along with Dr. Kimberly Jackson and Dr. Christina Lang applied to officially have physicians day changed to physicians week. This was accepted in March 2017. In 2017 Physicians Working Together (PWT, founded by Dr. Kimberly Jackson) sponsored a series of articles in celebration of National Physicians week that were hosted on KevinMD. In 2018 PWT along with Openxmed sponsored a free online conference focusing on physician well being and advocacy. In 2019, PWT and Openxmed sponsored a scholarship program for medical students and residents. The week long event focuses on advocacy and supporting the physician community.