Why Dr. Francisco Garriga Wrote “Tell Me How You Die Easy”
Doctors and medical professionals face many, often conflicting demands during their careers. To take responsibility for the care of seriously ill people is at the top of the list. Many times these highly trained and intelligent people deal with difficult emotional situations by creating distance between themselves and the patients they treat. It’s easier to deal with a list of symptoms than to personally connect with a living and breathing patient.
Francisco Garriga, M.D., has made it a habit to get to know the people he treats. During his 36 years in practice, Dr. Garriga has endeavored to learn as much about the lives of his patients as he does about what affects their health. The truth is that the two are indelibly connected.
The book “Tell Me How You Die Easy” is a practical guide to help doctors and medical professionals understand the importance of knowing their patients better. It also helps patients understand the difficult situations their care providers face on a daily basis. Through a series of personal anecdotes involving a variety of medical scenarios, the book clearly illustrates the need doctors and patients have to listen to each other. The stories offer lessons on how to deal with sick people, how to become a good person and how to learn about life.
“Tell Me How You Die Easy” Fills a Need Left by Other Books
Countless textbooks have been written regarding the practice of medicine. Nearly all of them are highly complex. They are written for class instruction and often discuss patient relationships in a general and impersonal way. The books are inadequate in an important respect. They leave a fundamental void in showing doctors how to deal with patients as people; complex individuals filled with anxiety and emotion.
“Tell Me How You Die Easy” fills this need. It consists of 141 pages packed with situations involving patients with concerns, families, and flaws. The stories drive home the central point often missing in medical literature: Patients don’t leave their lives in the waiting room when they see a doctor. Dr. Garriga emphasizes the importance of creating a deep and trusting relationship with patients. He illustrates that, when absent, the lack of compassion for patient welfare can sometimes be fatal. He shows that patient’s families are in dire need of emotional care during times of medical difficulty for their loved ones. The book is approachable for a wide audience based on its readability and freedom from medical jargon.