One Doctor: Close Calls, Cold Cases, and the Mysteries of Medicine by Brendan Reilly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
'One Doctor' by Brendan Reilly is a moving and brave paean to the generalist, family doctor the state of American health care - both its funding and distribution - and an array of mystery diagnoses that would make for a good episode of 'House'. His cry for more GPs with a friendly, concerned relationship with their patients is powerfully compelling. He honest candor for admitting mistakes is courageous and refreshing. This feeds into a support for more autopsies as a way of continuous improvement and validation of diagnoses.
Helping give continuity to this professional biography is Reilly's treatment of aeronautical engineer Fred Hooven and relationship with the family. As a small-town doctor in rustic New Hampshire, his willingness to do house calls, even on his days off, strained his marriage, but drew him deeper into his patients' lives, especially that of Fred, who had worked with Amelia Earhart in the 1930s. Fred died suddenly after he began to see angels and hear voices. Fred was renowned for many inventions, including the Hooven Radio Compass, an Automatic Direction Finder (or ADF), that was removed from Amelia Earhart’s plane before she took off on her last flight. This is both an inspiring and concerning read.
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