Dr. Michelle Izmaylov is an assistant professor of clinical medicine at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She has published over fifty essays in some of the most recognized medical journals and has won numerous awards; she presents internationally about narrative medicine in the United States and Canada.

“This collection is equal parts playful and poetic, magical realism à la Gabriel García Márquez mixed with the sagacious wit of Brecht, in its rare, forceful, and clear-eyed critique of political injustice. The Making of a Doctor is essential reading for those who seek to understand medical training and practice in the twenty-first century.” - Chase J. Webber, DO, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine and Biomedical Informatics “A deeply significant examination of how the transformation in medicine from a patient-centered profession to a transactional business has eroded the humanity in patient care as well as the physician’s sense of self, autonomy, and agency. Izmaylov eloquently captures the crisis slowly unfolding in offices and exam rooms, and in the hearts of those who once saw medicine as their calling, and provides sage advice on how the medical profession can move forward.” - Mark A. Goldstein, MD, Founding Chief Emeritus, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital

• IntroductionPart One: Medical Training1. Personal Statement2. This Is What Is Ahead3. Learning Curve4. What Is Considered Most Significant5. Ballet Lessons6. How Easy Girls Have It7. Prescriptions Per Your Insurance Company8. Lessons Learned in Intern Year9. Another Wellness Lecture10. The Worth of a LifePart Two: Patient Care11. Specialty Selection12. The Notes in the Margins13. Emergencies According to Hospital Policies14. Looking for Shoulders15. Floriography16. More Than a Little Sound17. The Cat Admitted to Medicine18. More Than Medications and Procedures19. The Social Skills of a Socially Awkward Physician20. Bedside MannerPart Three: Mental Health21. This Is Why22. Patients and Clinicians in Battle23. Societal Expectations24. Look Closely25. What It Really Feels Like26. The Constant Threat27. Attitude Adjustment28. On Communication29. The Last Minute Before Suicide30. Lifting the IllusionPart Four: The Pandemic31. Preventive Medicine32. Masking Battles33. The Cracks in the System34. Girl Turned Contaminant35. The Pain Scale36. When Social Media Turns Viral37. In Response to Clinicians Threatened for Offering Vaccines38. State of the Union Address39. What My Patients Taught Me40. Planning for the Next PandemicPart Five: Moving Forward41. To Those Who Consider Medicine a Profitable Business42. Fight and Flight43. Much Stronger Than They Realize44. Modern Art45. For Profit in Residency Education46. Suicide Match47. Reminders for Days of Fire48. On the Labels We Carry49. Words of Advice50. Enough

Dr. Michelle Izmaylov is an assistant professor of clinical medicine at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She has published over fifty essays in some of the most recognized medical journals and has won numerous awards; she presents internationally about narrative medicine in the United States and Canada.

“This collection is equal parts playful and poetic, magical realism à la Gabriel García Márquez mixed with the sagacious wit of Brecht, in its rare, forceful, and clear-eyed critique of political injustice. The Making of a Doctor is essential reading for those who seek to understand medical training and practice in the twenty-first century.” - Chase J. Webber, DO, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine and Biomedical Informatics “A deeply significant examination of how the transformation in medicine from a patient-centered profession to a transactional business has eroded the humanity in patient care as well as the physician’s sense of self, autonomy, and agency. Izmaylov eloquently captures the crisis slowly unfolding in offices and exam rooms, and in the hearts of those who once saw medicine as their calling, and provides sage advice on how the medical profession can move forward.” - Mark A. Goldstein, MD, Founding Chief Emeritus, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital

• IntroductionPart One: Medical Training1. Personal Statement2. This Is What Is Ahead3. Learning Curve4. What Is Considered Most Significant5. Ballet Lessons6. How Easy Girls Have It7. Prescriptions Per Your Insurance Company8. Lessons Learned in Intern Year9. Another Wellness Lecture10. The Worth of a LifePart Two: Patient Care11. Specialty Selection12. The Notes in the Margins13. Emergencies According to Hospital Policies14. Looking for Shoulders15. Floriography16. More Than a Little Sound17. The Cat Admitted to Medicine18. More Than Medications and Procedures19. The Social Skills of a Socially Awkward Physician20. Bedside MannerPart Three: Mental Health21. This Is Why22. Patients and Clinicians in Battle23. Societal Expectations24. Look Closely25. What It Really Feels Like26. The Constant Threat27. Attitude Adjustment28. On Communication29. The Last Minute Before Suicide30. Lifting the IllusionPart Four: The Pandemic31. Preventive Medicine32. Masking Battles33. The Cracks in the System34. Girl Turned Contaminant35. The Pain Scale36. When Social Media Turns Viral37. In Response to Clinicians Threatened for Offering Vaccines38. State of the Union Address39. What My Patients Taught Me40. Planning for the Next PandemicPart Five: Moving Forward41. To Those Who Consider Medicine a Profitable Business42. Fight and Flight43. Much Stronger Than They Realize44. Modern Art45. For Profit in Residency Education46. Suicide Match47. Reminders for Days of Fire48. On the Labels We Carry49. Words of Advice50. Enough

Dr. Michelle Izmaylov is an assistant professor of clinical medicine at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She has published over fifty essays in some of the most recognized medical journals and has won numerous awards; she presents internationally about narrative medicine in the United States and Canada.

“This collection is equal parts playful and poetic, magical realism à la Gabriel García Márquez mixed with the sagacious wit of Brecht, in its rare, forceful, and clear-eyed critique of political injustice. The Making of a Doctor is essential reading for those who seek to understand medical training and practice in the twenty-first century.” - Chase J. Webber, DO, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine and Biomedical Informatics “A deeply significant examination of how the transformation in medicine from a patient-centered profession to a transactional business has eroded the humanity in patient care as well as the physician’s sense of self, autonomy, and agency. Izmaylov eloquently captures the crisis slowly unfolding in offices and exam rooms, and in the hearts of those who once saw medicine as their calling, and provides sage advice on how the medical profession can move forward.” - Mark A. Goldstein, MD, Founding Chief Emeritus, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital

• IntroductionPart One: Medical Training1. Personal Statement2. This Is What Is Ahead3. Learning Curve4. What Is Considered Most Significant5. Ballet Lessons6. How Easy Girls Have It7. Prescriptions Per Your Insurance Company8. Lessons Learned in Intern Year9. Another Wellness Lecture10. The Worth of a LifePart Two: Patient Care11. Specialty Selection12. The Notes in the Margins13. Emergencies According to Hospital Policies14. Looking for Shoulders15. Floriography16. More Than a Little Sound17. The Cat Admitted to Medicine18. More Than Medications and Procedures19. The Social Skills of a Socially Awkward Physician20. Bedside MannerPart Three: Mental Health21. This Is Why22. Patients and Clinicians in Battle23. Societal Expectations24. Look Closely25. What It Really Feels Like26. The Constant Threat27. Attitude Adjustment28. On Communication29. The Last Minute Before Suicide30. Lifting the IllusionPart Four: The Pandemic31. Preventive Medicine32. Masking Battles33. The Cracks in the System34. Girl Turned Contaminant35. The Pain Scale36. When Social Media Turns Viral37. In Response to Clinicians Threatened for Offering Vaccines38. State of the Union Address39. What My Patients Taught Me40. Planning for the Next PandemicPart Five: Moving Forward41. To Those Who Consider Medicine a Profitable Business42. Fight and Flight43. Much Stronger Than They Realize44. Modern Art45. For Profit in Residency Education46. Suicide Match47. Reminders for Days of Fire48. On the Labels We Carry49. Words of Advice50. Enough