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Medicine in Translation: Journeys With My Patients
Medicine in Journeys With My Patients by Danielle Ofri. Beacon Pr,2010
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
19 people are currently reading
402 people want to read
About the author
Danielle Ofri
32 books309 followersWhen I started medical school, I had no idea that I would become a writer. I'd completed a PhD in the biochemistry of endorphin receptors, and planned to become a bench scientist with a once-a-week clinic to see patients.
But during residency, I fell in love with patient-care, and realized that I'd have to put bench research aside. After three years of training, I took off some time to travel. I spent 18 months on the road, working occasional medical temp-jobs to earn money, and then exploring Latin America for as long as my money would last.
It was during these travels, during this first true break from medicine, that I started writing down the stories of my medical training at Bellevue Hospital. I had no intentions about a book, or publishing at all, but I just needed to unload some of the stories that had built up over the years.
When I came back to medical practice, writing kept itself going in my life. Then I helped found the Bellevue Literary Review, which was another way to incorporate literature into medicine. Now, my time is split between clinical medicine, teaching, writing, editing, my newest hobby--cello, (and of course my three wonderful children!).
But during residency, I fell in love with patient-care, and realized that I'd have to put bench research aside. After three years of training, I took off some time to travel. I spent 18 months on the road, working occasional medical temp-jobs to earn money, and then exploring Latin America for as long as my money would last.
It was during these travels, during this first true break from medicine, that I started writing down the stories of my medical training at Bellevue Hospital. I had no intentions about a book, or publishing at all, but I just needed to unload some of the stories that had built up over the years.
When I came back to medical practice, writing kept itself going in my life. Then I helped found the Bellevue Literary Review, which was another way to incorporate literature into medicine. Now, my time is split between clinical medicine, teaching, writing, editing, my newest hobby--cello, (and of course my three wonderful children!).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
February 19, 2018
After having read many medical memoirs, I've found that certain writing styles were effective at discussing insights in quite a complex field. And Danielle Ofri's style just wasn't one of them. I've read three of her books including this one and unfortunately there were several factors that made her books difficult to get through. Her overt overuse of descriptions about minute details and the ramblings from that, a lack of structure in the writing, and a lack of progression in the themes she explored, made it very hard to focus and gain clear insights from the writing. I do appreciate and applaud her efforts into helping her patients and all the work she does. But that dedication did not get translated here.
July 6, 2015
Read this book as part of a chaplaincy residency program. The book provided good stories about caring for a diverse group of patients however the book lacked a structure which tied the stories together. Lost some of the details of the authors own story because of this unstructured presentation. The main line of the story, at least for me, came through as there must be a way to better care, to better understand, the patients that we see especially those that come from the margins of our very white society. We must find away to prevent our privelege from hindering the care we provide to the patients and from preventing us from hearing thier stories.
December 20, 2011
Eh. Interesting stories but the book had no structure to hold them together. One of the most blatant examples of "I make more money from a book than from New Yorker articles, so I guess my articles make a book!"
November 22, 2012
Weak narrative through-line, weak editing between sections. Worst of all, though I'm sure Ofri is lovely in person, she comes off as self-centered & clueless as a narrator.
July 27, 2024
After reading many medical books, this wasn’t a favorite. Although some of the patient stories were interesting, especially since they were all immigrant stories, her writing wasn’t capitivating & usually included lots of descriptions.
May 5, 2016
It's been ages and ages and ages since I read Singular Intimacies, but I retained enough of a memory of it to have high expectations for Medicine in Translation. I don't think this is necessarily as strong a book (bearing in mind that ages-and-ages thing and the resulting holes in my memory), but I appreciate Ofri's facility with words and the ways some of the characters here weave back in and out throughout the narrative.
Medicine in translation indeed. Ofri wonders, over and over again, how much she is losing by having to speak to so many of her patients through a simultaneous-translation service; I wonder, too, what that experience must be like for the patients. How much does relief that there is such a service trump the frustrations involved? And what of those hard conversations that Ofri talks about, the ones where nobody wants to address the elephant in the room? (Example elephant: 'You need a heart transplant, but since you're undocumented we can't put you on the list, so you're going to die young.') Ofri doesn't hesitate to put her own opinions in, with the understanding that they're just that—opinions—but things do get complicated. The elderly Chinese immigrant (who jokes, gently, that Ofri should be studying Chinese rather than Spanish, because there are so many Chinese speakers) who wants to go home to China to live out the last breaths of his life; his wife, younger and far more robust but slowly succumbing to dementia, doesn't want to go. Think of it as an ethics question—what is right (for patient, not doctor; it's not her call) in that situation? He doesn't know how much longer he'll live—but how would the answer change if he did know, and he had only a few months left? Or ten years? Or if we knew how fast his wife's dementia would progress, and how soon she might forget who he is?
So. Interesting stuff here. I'm fascinated by this Survivors of Torture program that Ofri talks about; there's clearly enough material there for a book all its own, but the 'quieter' stories leave some...breathing room is the wrong term, isn't it? Emotional space? It's a book to think on.
Medicine in translation indeed. Ofri wonders, over and over again, how much she is losing by having to speak to so many of her patients through a simultaneous-translation service; I wonder, too, what that experience must be like for the patients. How much does relief that there is such a service trump the frustrations involved? And what of those hard conversations that Ofri talks about, the ones where nobody wants to address the elephant in the room? (Example elephant: 'You need a heart transplant, but since you're undocumented we can't put you on the list, so you're going to die young.') Ofri doesn't hesitate to put her own opinions in, with the understanding that they're just that—opinions—but things do get complicated. The elderly Chinese immigrant (who jokes, gently, that Ofri should be studying Chinese rather than Spanish, because there are so many Chinese speakers) who wants to go home to China to live out the last breaths of his life; his wife, younger and far more robust but slowly succumbing to dementia, doesn't want to go. Think of it as an ethics question—what is right (for patient, not doctor; it's not her call) in that situation? He doesn't know how much longer he'll live—but how would the answer change if he did know, and he had only a few months left? Or ten years? Or if we knew how fast his wife's dementia would progress, and how soon she might forget who he is?
So. Interesting stuff here. I'm fascinated by this Survivors of Torture program that Ofri talks about; there's clearly enough material there for a book all its own, but the 'quieter' stories leave some...breathing room is the wrong term, isn't it? Emotional space? It's a book to think on.
May 7, 2016
This book was a very well written book detailing Dr. Danielle Ofri journey treating patients at Bellevue. This hospital is very old and a place where lots of cultures and ethnicities converse for health care. Over the two decades as a physician here she has crossed paths with many patients that have their own stories to tell. These people have had to brave many challenges to seek help from doctors. They have to face communication challenges, belief challanges, racial differences they also have to come face to face with the emotional and practical difficulties of living here in America for the access to the quality health care. Danielle tells her story in three parts which helps to break the stories that she tells. She illustrates her own personal challanges and limitations that she has when treating the different races and cultures. She explained that her lack of not knowing Spanish was a very big obstacle that she would need to overcome time and time again inorder to treat her patients and do her job. The book did a very good job of translating what happened in the day to day interactions with patients into what a normal person would understand. It did this by explaining the interacting of several patients and how each of these patients stories helped her to overcome the challenges of her job. The patients didn't seem to have any significant meaning but to her they made all the difference in the world of how she treated her Patients. This was a good book and I would recommend it.
December 5, 2012
Interesting about the range of patients and backgrounds but I guess I was looking for more medical, less background.
February 15, 2014
Good book, but I was put off a bit by the author's style.
July 23, 2017
I read at least one other book by Ofri and enjoyed it, so I was excited to pick up this one. It was a departure from a lot of the medical memoirs I have read in that this one has a specific theme, Ofri's work with patients of other cultures, most immigrants from non-English speaking countries and the challenges they faced to receive care in the U.S. With the exception of one patient, a woman from Mexico with a heart condition, they came legally, so the challenges weren't necessarily of political barriers to care, but largely cultural. A good number of them were refugees brought here because they were survivors of terroristic acts in their home countries, where they faced horrors that Ofri couldn't even begin to comprehend. Others presented a challenge to Ofri because of a language barrier, where even with the use of the hospital's translator system, she couldn't be sure her medical jargon and seriousness of tone was being properly conveyed to the patient sitting right in front of her.
Ofri also chronicled her yearlong sabbatical to Central America, as she wished to at least be able to converse directly with her Spanish-speaking patients, who made up the majority of those who spoke no English, and knew the only way to truly feel fluent in Spanish was to immerse herself in it 100%. However, a surprise pregnancy discovered at the beginning of that year, put her more into the shoes of her patients than she ever expected, as she was abruptly forced to navigate the medical system of a foreign country in order to ensure the safe delivery of her newest family member. It was a departure from her busy New York City life, as she left medicine behind and instead focused on learning Spanish, immersing herself in the culture, seeing that her two older children attended school to learn Spanish themselves, practicing her cello, and growing new life inside of her.
Overall, I found it an excellent book, that Ofri did a great job of keeping with the theme and educating me on multiple cultures and the differences among them that she, and other health care providers must know and adjust to in order to deliver adequate care to all of their patients. I look forward to reading other books of hers as I come across them.
Ofri also chronicled her yearlong sabbatical to Central America, as she wished to at least be able to converse directly with her Spanish-speaking patients, who made up the majority of those who spoke no English, and knew the only way to truly feel fluent in Spanish was to immerse herself in it 100%. However, a surprise pregnancy discovered at the beginning of that year, put her more into the shoes of her patients than she ever expected, as she was abruptly forced to navigate the medical system of a foreign country in order to ensure the safe delivery of her newest family member. It was a departure from her busy New York City life, as she left medicine behind and instead focused on learning Spanish, immersing herself in the culture, seeing that her two older children attended school to learn Spanish themselves, practicing her cello, and growing new life inside of her.
Overall, I found it an excellent book, that Ofri did a great job of keeping with the theme and educating me on multiple cultures and the differences among them that she, and other health care providers must know and adjust to in order to deliver adequate care to all of their patients. I look forward to reading other books of hers as I come across them.
December 31, 2022
This book is about multiculturalism in Ofri's hospital practice and, by extension, hospitals in New York City and the rest of the country/world. In a typical day, she dealt with people from several countries and continents. She wished she was more effective in Spanish, but her moderate level was not enough for detailed medical discussions. (There are specific Spanish courses for medical purposes; why didn't she consider one of those?) A telephone system provided translators for most languages, and it worked pretty well for her.
Some reviewer said that the book lacks structure and is rambling. I didn't think that. Some patients made one appearance in the book, but mostly she followed several patients over the course of time: the Nigerian student who came to the US for help with burns from a horrible attack; the paraplegic woman from Australia (no translator needed); the elderly Chinese couple; the young-ish Guatemalan woman with apparently terminal cancer; and others. She learned things from her patients, notably patience and paying attention to things that may not seem relevant.
In order to become more proficient in Spanish, and to give her kids the opportunity to become bilingual, Ofri and her family spent a year in Costa Rica. This part was not about her medical practice, but I enjoyed her account of life in Costa Rica, including how much more value that society (including hospitals) places in children and families.
I read a couple of Ofri's later books before this one. I liked this one more. The later ones worked with issues like the ones she encountered in this book, but tried more to quantify them with research and recommendations. They were good, but a bit dry for me, and I'd read much of that material elsewhere.
Some reviewer said that the book lacks structure and is rambling. I didn't think that. Some patients made one appearance in the book, but mostly she followed several patients over the course of time: the Nigerian student who came to the US for help with burns from a horrible attack; the paraplegic woman from Australia (no translator needed); the elderly Chinese couple; the young-ish Guatemalan woman with apparently terminal cancer; and others. She learned things from her patients, notably patience and paying attention to things that may not seem relevant.
In order to become more proficient in Spanish, and to give her kids the opportunity to become bilingual, Ofri and her family spent a year in Costa Rica. This part was not about her medical practice, but I enjoyed her account of life in Costa Rica, including how much more value that society (including hospitals) places in children and families.
I read a couple of Ofri's later books before this one. I liked this one more. The later ones worked with issues like the ones she encountered in this book, but tried more to quantify them with research and recommendations. They were good, but a bit dry for me, and I'd read much of that material elsewhere.
June 24, 2023
Decently written, but it gives the impression that most of the author's vocabulary was learned from the SAT reading section, and the book overall feels somewhat like an incredibly long medical school application essay to the question, "Describe a time when an interaction surprised you."
The patient stories presented are fairly interesting, but it's a little frustrating at a reader to have to listen to Dr. Ofri go through the same cycle of being annoyed with her own patients, planning her fantasy getaway, realizing her patient has had a tough life, and then trying to connect with them. I think that she talks more (and with more gusto) about her Costa Rica gap-year and her cello playing than anything in-clinic.
Several times throughout the book, I wondered if Dr. Ofri even really wanted to be a doctor at all, since her automatic reaction to her job a lot of the time seems to be frustration and annoyance. That being said, I don't think everyone is required to enjoy their 9-to-5 and see it as a passion, but I would find it as a precursor to writing a book about that said job. I did enjoy some of the patient backstories, though.
The patient stories presented are fairly interesting, but it's a little frustrating at a reader to have to listen to Dr. Ofri go through the same cycle of being annoyed with her own patients, planning her fantasy getaway, realizing her patient has had a tough life, and then trying to connect with them. I think that she talks more (and with more gusto) about her Costa Rica gap-year and her cello playing than anything in-clinic.
Several times throughout the book, I wondered if Dr. Ofri even really wanted to be a doctor at all, since her automatic reaction to her job a lot of the time seems to be frustration and annoyance. That being said, I don't think everyone is required to enjoy their 9-to-5 and see it as a passion, but I would find it as a precursor to writing a book about that said job. I did enjoy some of the patient backstories, though.
September 26, 2018
I enjoyed the book and felt like I learned a lot from it. It was just not what I was expecting when I went into the book. The book is best described as a memoir. I was thinking and hoping that she’d do more about things she has been trying (other then just learning the language and a translator) to help. The stories that she tells about her practice are interesting and thought provoking and some heartbreaking it’s all surface value. She never goes deeper and it’s disappointing.
April 19, 2022
I think it’s super valuable to read pieces that highlight medicine as narrative, and this was a great look into how medicine is practiced across cultures and languages. I enjoyed reading about the authors own journey in cultural/lingual competency. Her stories reaffirm how important it is to be a lifelong learner when in the field; you should always want to be better for your patients and your practice.
March 5, 2025
minus that this book was medical journals, it wasn’t awful. i read it for class & i also read it online. if this was something interesting to me id probably have read it faster and have better things to say. the only part that i genuinely enjoyed was the part where she talks about living in costa rica. i did actually like some of the patient stories tho, really brought out the social worker in me because of how unrepresented & how many things of injustice they all faced!!
June 6, 2025
I liked this book. As a nurse it is fun to follow Dr. Ofri as she cares for a variety of patients. The only major complaint I had was the use of so many huge words, I found myself reaching for the dictionary 3-6 times on every page. Also the use of words in other languages without translation or glossary was distracting.
October 1, 2019
>litany of immigrant sob stories
>feelings of inadequacy as a doctor to patients
>its ok i have my kids
saved you 250 pages
>feelings of inadequacy as a doctor to patients
>its ok i have my kids
saved you 250 pages
March 19, 2020
3.5 stars.
February 24, 2021
Interesting book. Wish she had done more reflection and examination of the the challenges and benefits of communication. She did some of this but it felt lacking
November 29, 2023
Well intentioned, appreciated the patient stories, could’ve been better organized
April 14, 2024
I really enjoyed reading about the health care system from a doctor’s point of view!
December 20, 2024
Read for Intro to Patient Care II
March 12, 2025
Well written memoir of patients who come from foreign countries. Emphasized the difficulties in communication.
February 9, 2017
Really makes you think about what makes people tick. Love how she connects to people.
June 20, 2011
Very thought-provoking and well written. Ofri tells the story of several of her patients and the daily struggles they endure related to their health, history and personal circumstances. It is amazing what some people are able to fight through and come out with a smile on their face and hope in their heart. Sad, yet heartwarming.
October 17, 2014
Interesting stories about patients with different medical issues coming from varied social and ethnic backgrounds, viewed in the light of Danielle Ofri - a doctor at the Bellevue Hospital. Addictive writing style. This was the first book I read by Danielle Ofri and due to her addictive writing style - definitely not the last.
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June 29, 2017I loved this book as much as I loved the author's Singular Intimacies. So beautiful, her involvement with her patients, which goes far beyond medicine and into the real of spirit. She cares, she truly does. If only all doctors were like this author. Very inspiring read!
February 7, 2013
Thumbs up for this 3rd Ofri book which covers her work with torture victims and immigrants, and her own sabbatical to learn Spanish to communicate better w/ her patients. And thank you to her patients for letting her write about them!
November 20, 2015
I really enjoyed reading about Dr. Ofri's interactions with patients of different ethnic origins at New York City's Bellevue Hospital. I'll have to see if there are articles that follow up on certain of her patients, such as the nonagenarian Dr. Chan.
March 1, 2010
It's a great read. Good storytelling and a glimpse of medicine, a healer's story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews