A “lyrical, inspirational” story of doctors who changed the health care of an African nation (Tom Brokaw, author of The Greatest Generation) Dr. Dilan Ellegala arrives in Tanzania, shocked to find the entire country has just three brain surgeons for its population of forty-two million. Haydom Lutheran Hospital lacks even the most basic surgical tools, not even a saw to open a patient’s skull. Here, people with head injuries or brain tumors heal on their own or die. When confronted with a villager suffering from a severe head trauma, Dilan buys a tree saw from a farmer, sterilizes it, and then uses it to save the man’s life. Yet Dilan realizes that there are far too many neurosurgery patients for one person to save, and of course he will soon be leaving Tanzania. He needs to teach someone his skills. He identifies a potential student in Emmanuel Mayegga, a stubborn assistant medical officer who grew up in a mud hut. Though Mayegga has no medical degree, Dilan sees that Mayegga has the dexterity, intelligence, and determination to do brain surgery. Over six months, he teaches Mayegga how to remove tumors and treat hydrocephalus. And then, perhaps more important, Dilan teaches Mayegga how to pass on his newfound skills. Mayegga teaches a second Tanzanian, who teaches a third. It’s a case of teach-a-man-to-fish meets brain surgery. As he guides these Tanzanians to do things they never thought possible, Dilan challenges the Western medical establishment to do more than send vacationing doctors on short-term medical missions. He discovers solutions that could transform health care for two billion people across the world. A Surgeon in the Village is the incredible and riveting account of one man’s push to “train-forward”—to change our approach to aid and medical training before more lives are needlessly lost. His story is a testament to the transformational power of teaching and the ever-present potential for change. As many as seventeen million people die every year because of a shortage of surgeons, more than die from AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. Dilan Ellegala and other visionaries are boldly proposing ways of saving lives.

Today he is known as Dr. Q, an internationally renowned neurosurgeon and neuroscientist who leads cutting-edge research to cure brain cancer. But not too long ago, he was Freddy, a nineteen-year-old undocumented migrant worker toiling in the tomato fields of central California. In this gripping memoir, Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa tells his amazing life story—from his impoverished childhood in the tiny village of Palaco, Mexico, to his harrowing border crossing and his transformation from illegal immigrant to American citizen and gifted student at the University of California at Berkeley and at Harvard Medical School. Packed with adventure and adversity—including a few terrifying brushes with death—Becoming Dr. Q is a testament to persistence, hard work, the power of hope and imagination, and the pursuit of excellence. It’s also a story about the importance of family, of mentors, and of giving people a chance.

Description The miracles and tragedies of life, the compassion and cruelties of humanity are nowhere more visible than in the field of medicine. It is these that Kavery Nambisan-doctor and writer of immense sensitivity-explores in this memoir, drawing upon her work as a surgeon over four decades in rural and small-town India. Through her patients' stories, she depicts the highs and lows of medical practice: Sudha, in Mokama, Bihar, left immobilized waist-down after being set on fire by her in-laws, but determined to walk; construction workers in Lonavala, Maharashtra, who preferred the quick-fix of the 'drip', so that they wouldn't miss their daily wage; four-year-old Pavana in the Anamallais, mauled by a leopard, who had to be driven over 40 kilometres of gutted roads to the nearest hospital. And in contrast, the friend of a Tamil Nadu chief minister who could summon a doctor repeatedly, at will, to attend to her stubbed toe. Settled in Kodagu, Karnataka, after years of practice in hospitals, Kavery now works as a GP, and she writes about treating snake bites, skin diseases, tuberculosis, epileptic seizures and, lately, Covid-19; even as she helps some of her patients hide their meagre savings from alcoholic husbands. Throughout, Kavery also examines the evolution of medical practice and the state of India's public health; and weaves in episodes from her personal life: learning from heroes and rogues, coming into her own as a surgeon, and nursing her husband, the poet Vijay Nambisan, who was claimed by cancer. Engaging, incisive and deeply felt, A Luxury Called Health shows, as few books have ever done, 'the sincerity and the deception, the valour and the cowardice beneath the white coat'.

Morris A. Robbins, M.D. tells a compelling story of overcoming seemingly impossible odds. He begins with a delightful look at his past in rural New Jersey. Ready to embark on his college education, he suffers a near-fatal accident that leaves him permanently maimed. With grit, determination, and ingenuity, he persists in following his dream of becoming a surgeon. During a 50-year medical career, Doc touched countless lives with his skill and inspiring example. His unassuming recollections are supported with additional material curated by his daughter Dorothy Robbins Talavera, including documentation from files, correspondence, news clippings, family photos and first-hand comments from people who knew him. This honest, but uplifting account is bound to be helpful to a wide-ranging audience of readers.

Inspiring and uplifting, this is the extraordinary the story of Dr Sanduk Ruit who, like his mentor Fred Hollows, took on the world's medical establishment to give the life-changing gift of sight to hundreds of thousands of the world's poorest and most isolated people. 'A true insight into my remarkable friend Dr Sanduk Ruit.' - Gabi Hollows 'He reminds me of Don Bradman. They both have a God-given talent and skill...' - Ray Martin 'If I've done one thing in life I'm proud of, it's launching Ruit into the world'. - Fred Hollows 'One of the greatest people I've ever met.' - Joel Edgerton 'I've known Dr Sanduk Ruit for over thirty years. He is one of our greatest living eye surgeons and humanitarians... Watching him give the gift of sight is like watching someone give a second life.' - Richard Gere Inspiring and uplifting, this is the extraordinary story of Dr Sanduk Ruit who, like his mentor Fred Hollows, took on the world's medical establishment to give the life-changing gift of sight to hundreds and thousands of the world's poorest and most isolated people. It is the story of a boy from the lowest tiers of a rigid caste system who grew up in a tiny, remote Himalayan village with no school to become one of the most respected ophthalmologists in the world and a medical giant of Asia. Compelling and compassionate, it is also the story of a young doctor who became Fred Hollows' medical soul mate and who chose to defy the world's medical establishment and the lure of riches to make the world a better place.

On average, a physician will interrupt a patient describing her symptoms within eighteen seconds. In that short time, many doctors decide on the likely diagnosis and best treatment. Often, decisions made this way are correct, but at crucial moments they can also be wrong—with catastrophic consequences. In this myth-shattering book, Jerome Groopman pinpoints the forces and thought processes behind the decisions doctors make. Groopman explores why doctors err and shows when and how they can—with our help—avoid snap judgments, embrace uncertainty, communicate effectively, and deploy other skills that can profoundly impact our health. This book is the first to describe in detail the warning signs of erroneous medical thinking and reveal how new technologies may actually hinder accurate diagnoses. How Doctors Think offers direct, intelligent questions patients can ask their doctors to help them get back on track. Groopman draws on a wealth of research, extensive interviews with some of the country’s best doctors, and his own experiences as a doctor and as a patient. He has learned many of the lessons in this book the hard way, from his own mistakes and from errors his doctors made in treating his own debilitating medical problems. How Doctors Think reveals a profound new view of twenty-first-century medical practice, giving doctors and patients the vital information they need to make better judgments together.

Of the thousands of people who escaped through the Pyrenees during World War II, at least one hundred owe their lives to a daring scheme that Belgian Charles Schepens masterminded in Mendive, a remote Basque village near the French-Spanish border. The story of this near-miraculous resistance effort, an epic undertaking carried out in plain view of the Nazis, is recounted in full for the first time in The Surgeon and the Shepherd, an incredible, true tale of wartime heroism. In 1942, in coordination with the Belgian resistance, Schepens stage-managed a highly secret information and evacuation service through the counterfeit operation of a back-country lumbering enterprise. This book traces Schepens's gradual transformation from an apolitical young ophthalmologist into double agent "Jacques Pérot," and his emergence in the postwar period as a modern folk hero to the residents of Mendive. Woven into the account are the stories of a remarkable international cast of characters, most notably the Basque shepherd Jean Sarochar, regarded as a local misfit, with whom Schepens formed his most unlikely partnership and an enduring friendship. Part biography, part spy tale, part cultural study, The Surgeon and the Shepherd is based on more than ten years of oral history research. The saga of a Belgian "first resister" who, by posing as a collaborator, successfully duped both the Germans and the local French Basque population, it offers a powerful and illuminating picture of moral and physical courage. Meg Ostrum is a museum professional and arts consultant based in Vermont who has worked in the heritage preservation field for more than twenty-five years. She has edited several documentary studies and collections of oral histories, including Visit'n: Conversations with Vermonters, an annual anthology published by the Vermont Folklife Center.

On the Border of a Dream tells the true story of a boy from rural Mexico, who at a young age sets his mind to becoming a surgeon in the USA. This memoir follows Edgar Hernandez from his tight-knit family in Mexico through his journeys to the USA. This is an inspiring story of a talented immigrant who achieves his dream: becoming a renowned surgeon.

Riaz Mohammed was born into a Muslim family in Pakistan. While a boy in the village of Gujarat, he witnessed a young boy chasing cattle into a fast-flowing stream. The boy was pulled from the water, but there was nothing that could be done for him—and he died. It was then that the author decided to be a doctor, so he could help people. Eventually, the author and his family immigrated to Scotland. There, he was treated unkindly, but he was determined to navigate his way through life. At age sixteen, he saw a vision of Jesus Christ while at camp. He converted to Christianity, which only made his life more complicated, but he studied hard and became a surgeon. He had started a family of his own and was at the top of his career when he contracted Hepatitis B—and he had to start over again in an entirely new way. Through it all, God worked in miraculous ways to never let him down.

His journey began in Iran, where he was born and learned the ways of an ancient civilization. As you travel with him, you will learn about his childhood, his parents, his teenage years and his years as a medical student in Iran. Arriving in a new country where people's beliefs and customs were so unlike his own, he discovered that if you are sincere in your beliefs, no matter how different they may be, most people will respect you and your right to your beliefs. Soon, he had two countries and fond memories of his youth in his native land and a deep gratitude for a country that has given him the opportunity to develop wonderful friendships. He has also learned that people are more alike than they are different and that everyone has a belief of some kind and that they want to be cared about and respected. Having the perspective of a native Iranian and a patriotic American, he provides a view of his heritage, as well as the continuing story of his life here in the United States. He was a surgeon who placed a higher value on being a humane, caring person rather than power or money. He has viewed his patients and co-workers as family and treated them with enduring love and respect. Without exception, they have reciprocated. As a physician, he knows laughter and hope is effective medicine, and he has supplied large doses of these in his stories. It is his desire that they give you enjoyment, as well as a more in-depth perception of a different culture and of the man who came from that culture. This is his small contribution to helping us all learn how to live in peace and harmony with one another.