“Before operating on a patient's brain, I realized, I must first understand his mind: his identity, his values, what makes his life worth living, & what devastation makes it reasonable to let that life end. The cost of my dedication to succeed was high, & the ineluctable failures brought me nearly unbearable guilt. Those burdens are what make medicine holy & wholly impossible.” DignitySurgeryPatient Doctor Relationship Book:When Breath Becomes Air Source: When Breath Becomes Air
“I thought back to med school, when a patient had told me that she always wore her most expensive socks to the doctor’s office, so that when she was in a patient’s gown and shoeless, the doctor would see the socks and know she was a person of substance, to be treated with respect.” DignityMedicineSubstanceHospitalPatient Problems Book:When Breath Becomes Air Source: When Breath Becomes Air