Review of “The Compassionate Connection” by Dr. David Rakel
June 27, 2018

by Louisa Tvito Dr. David Rakel, founding director of the University of Wisconsin Integrative Medicine program, and professor at the University of New Mexico, begins his new book, The Compassionate Connection: … chevron_right Read more

“Family Doc Diary” chronicles a year of residency through thoughtful illustrations
January 3, 2018

by Dorothy Levine, MD In “Family Doc Diary: A Resident Physician’s Reflections in Fifty-two Entries,” Phyllis Ying, MD, shares her art journal chronicling her first year of residency – the “intern” … chevron_right Read more

2017 Summer reading for compassionate clinicians
June 13, 2017
Molly Olmsted

compiled by Molly Olmsted Here are a few 2016 and 2017 releases we’re looking forward to reading this summer: Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity by Ronald Epstein “Attending” is both a term for … chevron_right Read more

Review of “If I Understood You, Would I have this Look on My Face?” by Alan Alda
June 6, 2017

by Elizabeth Gaufberg, MD Alan Alda begins his latest book in the midst of a conversation with the reader. His title “If I Understood You, Would I have this Look … chevron_right Read more

Review of “The Finest Traditions of My Calling” by Abraham M. Nussbaum
March 16, 2017
Molly Olmsted

In his latest book, “The Finest Traditions of My Calling: One Physician’s Search for the Renewal of Medicine,” Abraham M. Nussbaum pleads with readers to help him find the best … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Attending” by Ronald Epstein
January 24, 2017
Ali Rae

Dr. Ronald Epstein’s recently published book Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity is among the best books about how to teach the humanistic aspects of doctoring. Epstein weaves together an insightful … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Blood Lines” by Paul McLean
August 12, 2016
Molly Olmsted

When Paul and Jody McLean went to pick up their new beagle, her name was nothing more than a four-digit number tattooed on her inner ear. Hutch, as she later … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Bedside Manners”, by David Watts

Review by Perry Dinardo “I write the story and the story writes me.” In Bedside Manners: One Doctor’s Reflections on the Oddly Intimate Encounters between Patient and Healer, David Watts, MD … chevron_right Read more

Review of “In the Hands of Doctors” by Paul E. Stepansky
August 9, 2016
Ali Rae

Where does the artistry of medicine really lie, and how can we cultivate it in today’s doctors? These seem to be the central questions of Paul E. Stepansky’s book, In the Hands … chevron_right Read more

Review of “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanithi
June 29, 2016
Molly Olmsted

I flipped through the CT scan images, the diagnosis obvious: the lungs were matted with innumerable tumors, the spine deformed, a full lobe of the liver obliterated. Cancer, widely disseminated. … chevron_right Read more

2016 summer reading for compassionate clinicians

compiled by Molly Olmsted Here are a few 2015 and 2016 releases we’re looking forward to reading this Summer! What’s on your to-read list? When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi … chevron_right Read more

Review of “A Short Life” by Jim Slotnick

by Daniel Butler, MD In my third year of medical school, I was given a book that profoundly impacted my view of the doctor patient relationship. This book,  A Short … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Re-Humanizing Medicine” by David R. Kopacz
December 14, 2015

by Melissa Notis In his book Re-humanizing Medicine: A Holistic Framework for Transforming Your Self, Your Practice, and the Culture of Medicine, David Kopacz, MD explains how US healthcare has gotten to … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Heart Murmurs” by Sharon Dobie
December 8, 2015

by Molly Olmsted “It was quiet while they wrote,”  states Valerie Ross, MS in describing workshops in which physicians wrote about coming to know themselves better through interactions with their patients. The stories that … chevron_right Read more

“States of Grace”: Film Review
November 12, 2015

by Perry Dinardo For years, Dr. Grace Dammann dedicated herself to caring for others. As a physician, she co-founded the HIV/AIDS unit to care for patients at Laguna Honda Hospital … chevron_right Read more

Review of “God’s Hotel” by Victoria Sweet
September 24, 2015

by Ellen Hedstrom In Victoria Sweet’s God’s Hotel: a Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine, Sweet walks the reader through her journey as a doctor in … chevron_right Read more

Review of “What’s Left Out” by Jay Baruch
June 30, 2015

Review by Perry Dinardo True to the title, the stories in What’s Left Out are about the interstitial spaces of healthcare. While a few of the stories take place inside … chevron_right Read more

2015 Summer Reading for Compassionate Clinicians
June 13, 2015

Compiled by Ellen Hedstrom Here are a few 2014 and 2015 releases we’re looking forward to reading this Summer! What’s on your to-read list? The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly: … chevron_right Read more

Review of “The Digital Doctor” by Robert Wachter
June 1, 2015

Review by Perry Dinardo Few would doubt that the incorporation of modern technology into medical care has been “strewn with land mines, large and small.”  In The Digital Doctor, Robert … chevron_right Read more

Book Cover of The Digital Doctor
Review of “Being Mortal” by Atul Gawande
January 29, 2015

Review by Perry Dinardo “I learned about a lot of things in medical school, but mortality wasn’t one of them.” From the opening line of Atul Gawande’s newest book, Being … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Vital Conversations” by Dennis Rosen
November 17, 2014

Review by Liza Pine “It is the province of knowledge to speak, and it is the privilege of wisdom to listen.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes, American physician, 1809-1894.  So begins … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Alternative Medicine” by Rafael Campo
February 20, 2014

Review by Steven Cramer Robert Frost wrote that the greatest metaphor “is the philosophical attempt to say matter in terms of spirit, or spirit in terms of matter, to make … chevron_right Read more

Review of “Talking to Your Doctor” by Dr. Zackary Berger
November 11, 2013

Talking to Your Doctor by Dr. Zackary Berger, is unique in that it is written by a physician but geared towards patients. Dr. Berger uses his experience as both a doctor … chevron_right Read more

4 Summer Reads for the Compassionate Clinician
July 29, 2013

After reading the amazing short story collection “A History of the Present Illness” (go read it now!), I started thinking about tackling similar books on my “To-Read” list. Here are … chevron_right Read more

Collage of Book Covers for "In The Kingdom of the Sick"; "God's Hotel"; "What Doctors Feel" amd "Critical Decisions"
Review of “A History of the Present Illness” by Louise Aronson
July 25, 2013
Brandy King, MLIS

I just finished reading “A History of the Present Illness,” a compilation of sixteen fictional medical stories by Louise Aronson, for the second time since it was published in Spring … chevron_right Read more

Book cover of History of the Prsent Illness