In 2003, the Shreveport Surgical Society changed its name to the John C. McDonald Surgical Society to pay honor to the LSU Health Shreveport Department of Surgery's distinguished leader and confirm Dr. McDonald's dominant force in the department, community, and country.
Dr. McDonald always concluded his talk on “Professionalism” that he delivered each year to the incoming freshmen class of medical students with the following statement:
John C. McDonald, MD
Founding Member and Society Namesake
“I close with commending to you an observation that most of the wisdom of mankind has been reduced to aphorisms. I enjoy aphorisms, particularly trite aphorisms. Hippocrates, the father of western medicine, collected aphorisms. One, which I commend to you, is as follows:
‘The art is long, and life is short; the crisis is fleeting, experience deceiving, and judgment is difficult.’ Perhaps it can all be simplified to the aphorism of the old testament prophet who said: ‘What is expected of man except that he live justly, love mercy, and walk humbly in the presence of his God.’”
These and other words of wisdom from Dr. McDonald can be found at johncmcdonald.org.