Ronald Epstein, "Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity" (Scribner, 2018)

Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity (Scribner, 2017) is the first book about mindfulness and medical practice written for patients, their families, and for doctors and others providing health care. It is a groundbreaking, intimate exploration of how doctors approach their work with patients.

From his early days as a Harvard Medical School student, Ronald Epstein saw what makes good doctors great, how they deliver more accurate diagnoses, make fewer errors, and build stronger connections with their patients. This set the stage for his life's work—identifying the qualities and habits that distinguish master clinicians from those who are merely competent. The secret, he learned, was mindfulness.

Drawing on his clinical experiences and current research, Dr. Epstein explores four foundations of mindfulness — Attending, Curiosity, Beginner's Mind, and Being Present — and shows how clinicians can grow their capacity to provide high-quality care. In today's commodified health care system, with physician burnout at an all-time high, Dr. Epstein offers a model for doctors, patients, and their families on how to approach medical decisions mindfully and collaborate to achieve the best level of care for everyone.

Dr. Ronald Epstein is a practicing family physician and professor of family medicine, psychiatry, and oncology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where he directs the Center for Communication and Disparities Research. He is an internationally recognized educator, writer, and researcher whose landmark article, “Mindful Practice,” published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1999, has revolutionized physicians’ view of their work. Dr. Epstein has been named one of America’s Best Doctors every year since 1998 by U.S. News & World Report.

Elizabeth Cronin, Psy.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist and mindfulness meditation teacher with offices in Brookline and Norwood, MA. You can follow her on Instagram or visit her website.

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