A Migraine in Room 3, A Stroke in Room 4

"A Migraine in Room 3, A Stroke in Room 4: A Physician Examines His Profession" endeavors to rekindle the commitment to the human side of medicine by emphasizing patient-centered care. This book is a valuable educational text for medical students and physicians, yet anyone who has been a patient will appreciate and benefit from it.

Healthcare in America is in crisis. Rapidly increasing costs, highly variable medical outcomes, widespread dissatisfaction of both patients and doctors, and a reliance on a corporate business model are symptoms of the crisis. This book clarifies the system's failures, while emphasizing the absolute necessity for physicians to treat patients as individual human beings in need, not as medical problems or vessels of disease. Only with a return to this fundamental concept of care can the crisis be appropriately addressed.

"A Migraine in Room 3" distinctively addresses the practice of clinical medicine in three interconnected ways. The book begins with a comprehensive analysis of the flaws in today's healthcare system. Second, the clinical skills needed to succeed as a physician are reviewed in detail, accompanied by the author's philosophy of medical education, which has earned him numerous teaching awards.

Finally, the reader is treated to a unique treasure trove of patient quotes and vignettes concerning life, family and work, carefully recorded as Dr. Schanfield's patients faced illness, disability, aging and impending death. These often charming, sometimes wise or humorous, and even occasionally irreverent patient remarks could only be heard by a physician who values the principle of individualizing care of human beings.

The book concludes with a "top ten" list of steps to be taken to address the failures of the American healthcare system.