At a time of great change in the technology and delivery of medical care, the timelessness and permanence of the non-technical aspects of medicine—the human side—are of profound value to patients and physicians alike. With more than 30 years of medical practice, teaching, advising, and mentoring medical students and undergraduates, Savett champions two premises: first, that the importance of physicians mastering the human side of medicine is as critical as learning its biology and technology; and second, that this can be taught.^L Attending to the human side refines diagnosis and treatment by recognizing the uniqueness of each patient's experience, and it enriches the experience for all those in the caring professions. Physicians who have always put their patients' interests first and never compromised their professional values have preserved their identity, vitality, and enthusiasm as caring doctors. This is a book about what keeps the practice of medicine stimulating: not fascinating cases, but fascinating people and relationships, the best reasons to enter medicine.
Savett believes that learning about the human side of medicine will help to attract talented and compassionate people to a career in medicine and will provide a context for later learning in medical school, and that teaching the human side of medicine as a primary subject is critical to become a good doctor. The community of patients is the ultimate beneficiary. Essential reading for all students considering the profession of medicine as well as practicing physicians, nurses, and other medical personnel.
