The House of God

by Samuel Shem

“Every intern makes mistakes. The important thing is neither to make the same mistakes twice nor to make a whole bunch of mistakes all at once.

LAW NUMBER THREE: AT A CARDIAC ARREST, THE FIRST PROCEDURE IS TO TAKE YOUR OWN PULSE.”

LAW NUMBER FOUR: THE PATIENT IS THE ONE WITH THE DISEASE.

One of the true medical emergencies, when the nursing home sells the gomere’s bed.”

“No, we don’t cure. I never bought that either. I went through the same cynicism—all that training, and then this helplessness. And yet, in spite of all our doubt, we can give something. Not cure, no. What sustains us is when we find a way to be compassionate, to love. And the most loving thing we do is to be with a patient, like you are being with me.”

There is nothing more comforting during illness than a loved one to be with you and a good physician can serve that role . .

speaking up is essential for your survival as a human being.

How do you learn empathy? By putting yourself in another person’s shoes, feelingly, by seeing in them yourself. By seeing, in that tiresome old lady, your mother, and in that cranky child, your son.