Cirrus@Austlit

'It is through writing that many doctors have plumbed the depths and richness of their experiences and, in turn, used this to explore their patients' inner lives.

The Pen and the Stethoscope is a unique collection of fiction and non-fiction by doctor-writers that gives us a fascinating look behind the doctor's mask, and gets inside the minds of those who deal with enormous existential issues and traumatic situations on a daily basis.

These stories canvass emotional experiences acutely felt by doctors: an awareness of our mortality, of how humanity interplays with medicine, of the weight of responsibility carried by the profession. They bring into sharp focus, in many cases, the point of view of the patient, illuminating the experience of grief, trauma, illness, and ageing that doctors witness through their work.

With a foreword by Jerome Groopman, contributors include Oliver Sacks, Atul Gawande, Irvin Yalom, Jacinta Halloran, Abraham Verghese, Gabriel Weston, Peter Goldsworthy, John Murray, Robert Jay Lifton, Danielle Ofri, Perri Klass, Nick Earls, Ethan Canin, Sandeep Jauhar, and Leah Kaminsky.' (From the publisher's website.)