Volume 193 - Issue 11
Science and the soul
Author: Sue Ogle
Med J Aust 2010; 193 (11): 707. || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2010.tb04110.x
Published online: 6 December 2010
Published online: 6 December 2010
The pen & the stethoscope.
Leah Kaminsky, editor. Melbourne: Scribe Publications, 2010 (x + 223 pp). ISBN 9781921640735.
“Medicine is my lawful wife and literature my mistress; when I get tired of one, I spend the night with the other.” This quote from Anton Chekhov, perhaps the most famous doctor–writer, appears in the flyleaf of The pen & the stethoscope, a collection of stories by doctor–writers. Despite my misgivings about presenting fiction and non-fiction in the same volume, this is a seamless set of narratives by doctors, from varying specialties, who are also accomplished writers. It demonstrates that we, as doctors, have moved beyond the 19th century and Chekhov’s need to separate our scientific and humane selves in the clinical setting.
Leah Kaminsky, herself an award-winning author and practising family physician in the United States, has assembled an international cast of doctor–writers who illuminate issues such as the challenge of ageing, suicide of a colleague, and guilt at failure but also success in medicine. We are treated to an insightful exploration of the thoughts and feelings of doctors in their daily work. The point of view of patients and their loved ones is also elaborated with great skill. Ethan Canin, in his exquisite tale, “We are nighttime travellers”, details the disintegration of a man and his marriage over many years, and his final very moving redemption.
In “The checklist”, Atul Gawande details a doctor’s simple but ingenious idea that has saved lives. “Do not go gentle”, by Irvin Yalom, is an account of a psychiatrist who can identify with his patient who hoards the letters of a long-lost lover. Oliver Sacks, in “The lost mariner”, writes about a neurological conundrum with his usual fluidity and flair. Jacinta Halloran, in “Finding Joshua”, exposes every doctor–mother’s fear that a demanding job will not leave enough time for her children.
I enjoyed reading The pen & the stethoscope. The stories are well written, thought provoking and appealing to both doctors and lay people. Medical students may find these narratives particularly enlightening. I recommend this collection as a good addition to the Christmas holiday reading list.