Life After Medical School: Thirty-Two Doctors Describe How They Shaped Their Medical Careers [Hardcover]

Leonard Laster (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1996

Doctors tell of obstacles encountered, the ever-more demanding business of practicing medicine, and mid-career decisions to pursue something else. Dr. Laster presents interviews with both practicing doctors and those who have pursued alternative careers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Directed to medical students as a guide to choosing their disciplines, the overarching theme here is, "Physician, know thyself," with 32 of them reminiscing about their backgrounds and why they chose their specialties and discussing their daily work. The pieces are written as first-person narratives, fashioned by Laster, founder and chancellor emeritus of the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, who conducted the interviews so deftly that self-revealing personalities emerge. Readers discern connections between specialty and character; those who treat, say, HIV and cancer patients sound especially sensitive, while the pathologist and radiologist, who have little ongoing patient contact, seem to be more interested in medicine as science. The physicians include women and African Americans and run the gamut from psychiatrists (among them, Peter Kramer, author of Listening to Prozac) to surgeons and pediatricians. Also here are physicians who no longer practice, such as Howard Dean, governor of Vermont, and Arnold Relman, editor-in-chief emeritus of the New England Journal of Medicine. Many of the physicians are strongly critical of interference from insurers in the doctor-patient relationship, yet only one physician here practices with an HMO, an area that should have been more fully explored.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1 edition (January 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393710300
• ISBN-13: 978-0393710304
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #938,922 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating but has limits, March 14, 2000

By 

Ryo A. Shohara - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Life After Medical School: Thirty-Two Doctors Describe How They Shaped Their Medical Careers (Hardcover)

This book is a breath of fresh air for those who are applying to or are planning to attend medical school. The perspectives from physicians (both practicing and not) in a range of careers are insightful and provide a glimpse into the many weaves and turns a medical career can take. My only criticism (and the author notes this, too) is that the profiled physicians are all very similar in terms of region where they work (mostly New England) and ethnicity, thus this book does not address such concerns as racism in medicine that may be important to minorities like myself who wonder about how such challenges can affect one's career choices. With that caveat, I fully recommend this book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Appropriate for some., April 4, 2001

By 

V. Ko - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Life After Medical School: Thirty-Two Doctors Describe How They Shaped Their Medical Careers (Hardcover)

I thought this book was good in describing 32 different thought processes involved in deciding on a career with a MD. However, I noticed most of the essays were written by people that went into academic medicine. I would say that most medical school graduates will not enter this arena. I found it interesting how frequent the physicians moved or changed careers. It would have been nice to hear more from physicians who spent a long time in a group practice in one geographic area.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars nice 'multi-layered' perspective on similar aspects of medic, July 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Life After Medical School: Thirty-Two Doctors Describe How They Shaped Their Medical Careers (Hardcover)

Providing multi-person perspectives on diverse aspects of medical education and practice, this book offers great insight into the beginnings of great doctors of our era. The only problem: these doctors are extraordinary, not-normal people. Their experiences may serve as motivation for some students, still they may give a false reassurance on a very dynamic and competitive field. Next time this book is written, normal, day to day doctors should also be interviewed. They also have extraordinary tales.