jbarryengelhardtbooks

Here is what people are saying about 'Musings of a Medical Dinosaur':

'Musings' is of interest to anyone who has visited a Doctor, and it should be required reading for those considering entering the profession. It's also a book for citizens who care about the future of publicly funded health care. This 'Dinosaur' speaks and he is worth listening to.

"Everyone would understand life better

This book opens eyes about the failings we have as people and how those need to be recognized and forgiven. The more compassionate we are towards each other the better we can work together. Barry Engelhardt is well read and uses many life stories to illustrate his point that no one is perfect but that we can succeed in life by learning. This book made me laugh, made me cry, and made me think. I don’t read books more than once but this one I will read again."

R.D.

" Dr Engelhardt is a profound, ethical, and deep thinker with many deep insights into the world of health care. I purchased this book for my doctor girlfriend, and we have discussed it often. Recommended for everyone, but in particular for anyone in clinical health care."

T.M.

"The older we get so does the frequency of trips to our medical practitioners. Many of us carefully prepare for each visit, for example by searching the Internet, so that when they enter the doctor’s office they have their list of questions and concerns ready. This book is extremely helpful in this regard showing both, the physician and the patient perspective, not only because it has been written by a doctor with extensive experience but also because he is a humanist whose views are very important in the current world based on increasingly inhumane rules imposed by limited costs of healthcare. The author has a degree not only in medicine, but also Master’s Degree in bioethics, and the book shares his expertise by covering issues not limited to medicine, but also around ethics and philosophy, as well as spirituality (but without discussing religion explicitly, making it broadly accessible to individuals with various belief systems). This makes the reading even more interesting, entertaining, and educational.
The book is not only for patients but also for physicians truly caring for their patients. Each chapter starts with an epigraph that is carefully chosen for that chapter (I read and reread many times most of these quotations with great interest.) To avoid making this review too lengthy, I will only mention the chapter on death, a topic that most of us find interesting proportionally to our age and state of health. We live in the era of ever-increasing attempts to replace palliative care with euthanasia, and adding limitations for those who are emotionally and/or physically challenged, therefore issues described in this chapter are particularly timely.
In short, I highly recommend this book!"

L.G.

"I need doctors. I respect doctors . And I can be scared of doctors. Like a kind Wizard behind the curtain, Dr. Barry reveals just what it's like to be a real caring doctor with questions and fears of his own. By sharing his ideas on education, parenting and love he unearths the humanness of healing. You might ask how can a read that tackles neuroplasticity, brain development, death and , of course, hockey , hang together? And how is that related to patient care? I think the writer's warmth and humour and reflections on the fact his musings are far wandering are what make the book an informative and entertaining read. His frank reveal about his humanness and his fear overcome by his caring made my next trip to my own doctor much more pleasant."

E.H.

"Dr. Engelhardt’s musings make for a thought-provoking but also pleasant read. With plain language and an often humorous approach, the book makes us aware of a number of medical and other “serious” life issues. As a patient, it was enlightening to get to know a doctor’s thoughts, approach and experiences with his patients, the medical profession and the health care system. As a reader, I found myself embarking on a journey of self-reflection on values and human relationships."