Catching Babies

by J.D. Kleinke

Birth, and death. Two ends of the same spectrum. And sometimes the only person standing between is a tired, overworked resident with personal problems of her own.

Welcome to the world of Catching Babies . In the halls of a busy metropolitan teaching hospital, a group of OB/GYN doctors complete their residencies and embark on ambitious careers, all while trying to hold their lives together at the seams. Jay is running from a life he’s tried to leave behind, while Katie sacrifices everything she has to serve an endless parade of needy patients. Anna is out trying to save the world, while Tracy is trying to save twins dying in utero. Based on true stories from delivery rooms and labor decks, Catching Babies spins the doctors’ stories into a gripping mosaic of the obsessions, the anxieties, and the heroism of doctors who have chosen to preside over life’s greatest medical drama—high-risk childbirth.

Genres: Medicine

400 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2011

Reviews

[J.D. Kleinke]

I wrote it, so of course I think it's wonderful. Catching Babies is exactly the book I would have wanted to discover years ago, when I first ventured into women's health research, and it did not exist, and so - the rest is research, daydreaming, and typing. Lots and lots and lots and lots of research, daydreaming, and typing...

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I heard about it through theunnecesarean.com and a few other natural birth sites - this author does an amazing job of novelizing them current state of the maternity care system in America. He is spot on regarding the problems, some solutions, there are no real bad guys and no flawless good guys. It is wonderful and a gripping story to boot. I stayed up until 11:30 to finish it last night and I am NOT a stay up late person.

One issue to keep in mind: if you are pregnant or newly postpartum, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. Not until after your hormones have regulated. There are some scary scenes of birth issues gone horribly awry, and that small percentage chance looks a lot scarier when you see it described in a story. I am 9 months postpartum with my last baby and that is about as soon as I'd have felt comfortable reading it.

[Tracy Tesseneer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this book as an audiobook!
If you like medical dramas you will like this book. It gave me "Grey's Anatomy" or "Private Practice" vibes. Characters are mostly likeable. I personally didn't like Tracy. She didn't treat Jay right and she always brushed him off and spent time at work or with her friends instead of him. And the " Huuunnneeeeyyyy" that she always yelped at him when he talked to her was ANNOYING! I think Jay is probably my favorite character. He thinks with his heart instead of his mind. He does what's beat for his patients and he shows he really cares about them.
The narration in this audiobook was great! The narrator's voice was smooth and enjoyable to listen to, showing just the right amount of emotion at the exact right times. I must seek out more audiobooks from this narrator!
I really enjoyed this book. I work in the medical field so I always looking for medical based books and movies to enjoy. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys medical dramas or works in the medical field.

[Alissa Quick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book that explores the difficult world of women’s health and pregnancy, mixing a huge variety of medical realities into the fictional worlds of a group of doctors. At first the book seemed sterile and almost like a medical journal, but as the pages go by I found myself rooting for Jay and Peter and Katie and all the others.

This book is a good reminder of how different the medical field is - and how I’m so grateful for those who have the nerve, finances, brains, passion, and strength to deal with some of life’s most difficult experiences.

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I found this freshman ‘novel’ compelling, I also found it to be an ill-disguised editorial on the author’s opinions on current ob/gyn practices and principles. I think the author hid behind the novel to ‘preach his gospel’.

I would also have been more pleased had the focus been more patient- than doctor-centric. The practitioners here beautifully illustrate the phrase ‘doctor, heal thyself’.

[Deedra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audio: This was an excellent book!I enjoyed the behind the scenes look at what doctors go through before and after medical school.Each person had a different reason to be there,and to see their lives play out is very interesting and heartbreaking.Narration by Kathy Hung Li was terrific! I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointed

I am not sure I liked or even enjoyed this book. I thought there would be more stories about babies being delivered and less about the love lives of the doctors. I was just vs disappointed in this book.

[Teresa Lavoie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Wanted a light hearted m

edical book,after reading 3books about the Holocaust,and,this was a good break.Loved the characters,in particular,Jay Schartz,and Dr Dan.Covered all kinds of topics.

[Dayna Vanover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Depressing!

There were some happy times in this book, but most were far and few, unfortunately. Too many deaths and diseases. I read the whole book, but it was no easy.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Catching Babies is not a treatise on health care policy. Medical economist and health care entrepreneur J.D. Kleinke provides policy wonks, medical professionals and health care administrators enough meat to satisfy their cravings, but just as health care fundamentally tests our humanity, Catching Babies succeeds because its story strikes at the heart of the human dramas that medicine often seeks to cure.

Catching Babies follows a group of ob/gyns as they finish their residencies and embark on their careers in private practice, research and public health. Personal tragedies, abuse and insecurities drive these over-achievers into medicine and towards the self-aggrandized belief that they can defy nature and “make a difference.”

Kleinke’s goal is to shed light on the underlying issues bogging down the U.S. health care system, but what he delivers is a raw tale of human trials, foibles and emotion. The doctors at the center of Catching Babies are as flawed as the system in which they work and their attempts to heal themselves echo our efforts to create an efficient and effective health care system.

At 330 pages, Catching Babies is not a frivolous read, but Kleinke’s expertly crafted prose, thoughtfully planed plot and meticulously developed characters guide the reader quickly and smoothly through this compelling human and medical drama.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ordered this book after hearing the author, a medical economist, speak on various issues in our funding of healthcare. He made a comment about how important maternal healthcare is to solving a lot of the issues in healthcare delivery, and that he had written this book on the subject.

So I ordered it, not realizing until it arrived that it is a novel.

This began as Kleinke's research. Upon discovering that personal lives and perspectives of physicians was a large component of care quality, he opted to tell their tales through fiction.

An easy read, it is filled with unexpected vignettes of physicians' perspectives. True to its intent, these stories highlight just how complex our delivery of healthcare is, how imperfect the endeavor, how challenging it is to be a good doctor, and how many incentives in the system do not help.

[Alethea Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well researched and believable novel! I would have loved to see some depth in the nursing or midwife characters, but as an RN working in labor and delivery this book gave me a new appreciation for lives of the physicians I work with. This book is full of interesting insights into the challenges of balancing the health of women and children with the politics of healthcare policy. I highly recommend this book to anyone, and especially to anyone who works in the field or is responsible for making decisions about women’s healthcare options. Heartbreaking, heartwarming and absolutely worth the time to read!

[Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around - nobody big, I mean - except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff - I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be."

J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Delightful guilty pleasure read. Combine Gray's Anatomy and ER and set it in a Labor & Delivery unit: lots of drama, some medical and some romantic/interpersonal.

DO NOT read this if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or have recently been pregnant. Lots of really bad stuff happens. I would certainly steer clear of the hospital where this takes place because they just keep having one bad outcome after another after another . . .

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, there was a little bit of midwife-silliness, but nothing damaging and really did address the importance of collaborative practice between doctors and midwives. I found this to be a compelling read with interesting and complex characters, as well as a good effort to bridge the gap between the art and science of catching babies.

[Kami McGladrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in three days - it was a work of fiction, but represents the real lives of inner city OB/GYNs. It was about fabulous births, stillborns, moms who died during birth, cancers, and the relationships, joys, pains and fears of doctors. There were some illicit relationships (meaning people sleeping around) that really could have been omitted from the story - didn't love that part.

[Kathleen Smith · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is one of the most off the mark books I have read in a long time. Suppose to be about birthing babies and it leaves that path and goes off in all directions. Sorry, but I did not even finish it. I just saw that this is a debut novel written by a medical economist.

[Danalisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting take on the US medical system regarding childbirth. Told from a Dr. view in a novel form. I enjoyed it but def found it sad at parts to read as a mother.

[Kelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little too much birth drama (of course) but I did like the characters and their stories for the most part.

[Dbecker · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Grey's Anatomy of OB/GYN....