A Piece of My Mind: A New Collection of Essays from Jama

by Roxanne K. Young

"A Piece of My Mind" (APOMM) is a weekly feature in JAMA; physicians, residents, medical students, nurses, patients, family members of patients, and others submit stories that reflect their experience and thoughts regarding health, illness, medical care, and death and dying. "APOMM" is the cornerstone of the JAMA Medical Humanities program, and surveys reveal that when readers open their new copies of JAMA each week, most turn first or second to "APOMM." Many stories are heart-warming. some are sad, some are funny, and all are thoughtful and thought-provoking. This new collection is the cream of the crop about 80 stories culled from the past 10 years. A previous collection in 1988, published in conjunction with Feeling Fine, Inc., and Alfred A. Knopf, sold about 14,000 copies.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1579470823
• ISBN13: 9781579470821
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: American Medical Association Press
• Length: 332 Pages
• Weight: 1.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

I loved pages 55 and 56!

There seems to be quite a disparity in the quality of the prose. Although some stories were interesting, most were hackneyed. However, the story on page 55, entitled Hands On, is certainly of a professional demeanor. The problem with a collection of essays from different authors is not merely the variation in style but quality. I would much prefer to see a book filled with this one authors essay's. The others need tighter editing.

The heart and soul of medicine

Roxanne K. Young, the editor of this book, is Director of the Department of Medical Humanities of the Journal of the American Medical Association. As a practicing physician, each week I and many of my colleagues turn first to the Journal's "A Piece of My Mind" column from which the essays in the book come. Mostly written by physicians, essays also come from other health care professionals, patients, families, and others. In reading this work, the reader will find the hopes, fears, feelings, dreams, concerns, and clear and poignant observations of those who heal. If you desire to know not just the science of medicine, but its heart and soul, read this book.