The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly cover art

The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly

A Physician's First Year

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The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly

By: Matt McCarthy
Narrated by: Matt McCarthy
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About this listen

In medical school, Matt McCarthy dreamed of being a different kind of doctor - the sort of mythical, unflappable physician who could reach unreachable patients. But when a new admission to the critical care unit almost died his first night on call, he found himself scrambling. Visions of mastery quickly gave way to hopes of simply surviving hospital life, where confidence was hard to come by and no amount of med school training could dispel the terror of facing actual patients.

This funny, candid memoir of McCarthy's intern year at a New York hospital provides a scorchingly frank look at how doctors are made, taking readers into patients' rooms and doctors' conferences to witness a physician's journey from ineptitude to competence. McCarthy's one stroke of luck paired him with a brilliant second-year adviser he called "Baio" (owing to his resemblance to the Charles in Charge star), who proved to be a remarkable teacher with a wicked sense of humor. McCarthy would learn even more from the people he cared for, including a man named Benny, who was living in the hospital for months at a time awaiting a heart transplant. But no teacher could help McCarthy when an accident put his own health at risk, and showed him all too painfully the thin line between doctor and patient.

The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly offers a window on to hospital life that dispenses with sanctimony and self-seriousness while emphasizing the black-comic paradox of becoming a doctor: How do you learn to save lives in a job where there is no practice?

©2015 Matt McCarthy (P)2015 Random House Audio Medical Physician & Patient Hospital Medical education Health care Witty Funny Heartfelt

Critic Reviews

"[This] rousing memoir describes [a] tumultuous year of medical internship at Columbia University Medical Center in New York, a 12-month marathon noteworthy for a steep learning curve, emotional extremes, and chronic sleep deprivation... A genuine glimpse at the making of a doctor." ( Booklist)
"This story is a year in the life of an almost-doctor, but it is so much more than that. It's a book about mentorship, compassion, pride, and the insecurity of learning the most important lessons in your career - and in your life - long after those lessons were supposed to be taught. It's about the precarious and often unclear boundary between life and death, and those tasked with maintaining this boundary, even at the end of a thirty-hour shift. Perhaps above all, it's about decent people doing a very hard, decent thing with their lives. Yes, doctors are people too - and McCarthy tempers and then transcends the unease of such a reminder by telling his story with much humor, and even more heart." (Jeff Hobbs, author of The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace)
"Matt McCarthy's new book, The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly, is an honest, beautiful, and terrifying look at what goes into creating a doctor. Filled with very human characters, both doctors and patients alike, Matt's well-paced writing makes it easy to imagine yourself in the shoes of a brand new intern, nervous and afraid, yet still tasked with literal life and death decisions. I would recommend this book to anyone who knows or has been treated by a doctor (so basically everyone)." (Chris Kluwe, author of Beautifully Unique Sparkleponies)

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Heartfelt, entertaining and a likeable narrator

A memoir full of take aways and life lessons. Highly recommend to lay persons but especially healthcare professionals or prospective students in the health sciences.

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Great listen

Im a medical student and I found this book both interesting and educational. Would recommend.

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Hooked

Loved this book and was unable to stop listening, found myself listening more than any other book. Great insight into what medicine is behind the scenes

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Fantasticly written!

As a registered nurse with many years experience in a large teaching hospital, I thoroughly enjoyed the detail in this book.

Congratulations on surviving M!

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How an Intern survives his first year is amazing

If you work in the Health system providing patient care ( or have done) then this book is a fascinating insight into an Intern's first year. How they survive the gruelling work hours; in some cases 30 hours non-stop (no sleep) is a miracle. Why there are not more patient-related incidents is also a miracle. The system for training interns is tough and in this day and age you would wonder why it still exists in this way.
The experiences and learning situations are certainly interesting as the student transitions to Doctor. The personal toll and sacrifice is huge.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it

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Well done!!!

I loved this title. An applicable, pertinent and encouraging read for interns! Definitely worthwhile with some good insights by the author.

Author’s choice to use his own voice to narrate made it that much better knowing we were listening directly to him.

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Strongly relatable and entertaining

Truly a remarkable book, it’s relatable even for those who isn’t are Interns. I couldn’t stop listening to it. Matt MacCarthy’s story telling makes you feel like you’re his friend listening to his interesting stories of his adventures as a junior doctor

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Captivating

Captivating insight into the first year of medicine. It is entertaining and heartbreaking all at once. A great listen if you are interested in the field of medicine and real life stories.

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great book, very real dairy like

great story telling with a suck you in way for sharing stories throughout his progression.

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Excellent read

A really wonderful insight into the life of an intern. Heart warming and genuine, read beautifully by the author. Loved every second of it.

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