Bedside Manners: One Doctor's Reflections on the Oddly Intimate Encounters Between Patient and Healer

Have you ever wondered what life is like on the other side of the stethoscope?

Combining the grace and precision of a poet with a down-to-earth, compassionate manner, physician and NPR commentator David Watts reveals what it’s really like to be a doctor today. From difficult diagnoses, irreverent colleagues, brave survivors, and examining room embarrassments, Watts uncovers the world of contemporary medicine and shares the emotional truths and practical realities at the heart of every doctor-patient relationship.

Watts’s warmhearted and understanding attitude toward his patients—and their foibles—is evident on every page of this surprising, poignant, and intimate look inside the life of a doctor who could very easily be your own.

David Watts, M.D., is a poet and a regular commentator on NPR’s All Things Considered. He lives in Mill Valley, California.