Hands

Hands 
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA); by R. Jordan Williams, MD, MPH; 8/13/25
Lend me your hand
Callused or calamined
Wrinkled or plump,
Nails bitten
Nails extended
Splintered and pitted
Nails neatly or never cropped.
Lend me your hand
Strong or weak
Cold or warming
Swollen and swanned;
Gnarled in knots ...
Editor's Note: Continue reading this powerful poem. Reflecting on its meanings, JAMA paired "Hands" with this description of the poem in "Poetry and the Medicine of Touch" by Rafael Campo, MD, MA: "In this deeply felt poem, the hand becomes a potent metaphor for our shared humanity ... Aspiring clinicians are still taught to assess, to palpate, to diagnose through touch. Yet, as “Hands” reminds us, patients’ hands hold far more than clinical signs—they reflect stories, histories, fears, and hopes. ..."