Becoming a Better Physician: Insightful and Inspirational Stories from Attending Physicians, Residents, and Medical Students

Consists of inspirational and validating true stories from clinicians Describes illuminating personal and professional problems that clinicians encounter during the course of their lives Encourages openness and storytelling amongst physicians to improve as physicians and as a community. This book offers insights from doctors and doctors-to-be about successes they’ve enjoyed and obstacles they’ve faced, personal and professional. Some of these essays are easy to celebrate, and others are painful to absorb. All encourage the reader to reflect upon their own stories, embrace vulnerabilities, forgive shortcomings, celebrate resilience, and, by doing so, become a better physician. The topics covered in these essays are divided into six chapters titled Learning and Training, Career, Caregiving, Physician as Patient, Personal Growth, and Love and Loss. Authors discuss a wide range of experiences that include combining marriage and residency, navigating racism, honing communication, forging relationships with patients and colleagues, battling addiction, getting fired, facing death, and more. Becoming a Better Physician is a beautifully written volume that will enlighten physicians, future physicians, and anyone interested in learning how physicians grow as medical professionals and as human beings. Foreword Preface Introduction Contents Editors and Contributors About the Editors Contributors 1: Learning and Training Commentary: Thawing Good Grief The Night I Almost Walked Away from Medicine Work on Professionalism My Undeserved Coaches Married in Medicine 2: Career Commentary: My COVID Epitaph Finding Empathy While Fighting Misinformation No Silence, Please! Instead of That Phone Call Hard Work A Triumph Over Moral Injury Forging Trust Being Fired 3: Caregiving Commentary: Deep Breath Befriending Our Edges The Art of Listening: Beyond Languages and Borders One to One Young Hearts Dying Tell Me More Superheroes Need Healing Too My Father Didn’t Want to Live if He Had Dementia—But Then He Had It 4: Physician as Patient Commentary: There Is No “Us” and “Them” in the Doctor–Patient Relationship There Is No Crying in Surgery I’ll Never Float Again The 7-Year Consult Joy Machine Free Refills Doctors Are Humans: Breaking Painful Stereotypes A Journey’s Journal: Finding Strength in Words and Gratitude in Experience Lessons Learned 5: Personal Growth Commentary: Anatomy of Burnout The Blessing of a Bear unDOCumented Medicine Overcoming Overwhelm The Frustration of a Musician-Turned-Physician Are you Chinese? Yes, and I’m Asian American Too Embracing Loss to Find Fulfillment 6: Love and Loss Commentary: Abe The Gifts Grief Brings: One Physician’s Journey Through Grief After Loss Mental Compartment Syndrome: It Is Time to Decompress No Symptoms or Signs Learning to Live in an Alternate Universe Superiority of the Grieving Syndrome (SGS) I Learned the Most from My Father’s Death Following Surgery Acknowledgements Index