Every Story Counts: Collection of Essays Published by the American Association for Physician Leadership Tells the Overall Story of What it Means to Be a Physician

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Story telling is one of the oldest, purest, and most effective modes of communicating and teaching, and in a new book, Every Story Counts: Exploring Contemporary Practice Through Narrative Medicine, a career physician leader shares the stories of his journey.

Author Arthur L. Lazarus, MD, MBA, CPE, DFAAPL, DLFAPA, is a healthcare consultant, certified physician executive, and nationally recognized author, speaker, and champion of physician leadership and wellness. 

Lazarus has also held leadership positions in several pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and AstraZeneca, conducting clinical trials, and reviewing promotional material for medical accuracy and FDA compliance.  He has published more than 250 articles in scientific and professional journals and has written four books, including Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome and Related Conditions, Controversies in Managed Mental Health Care, Career Pathways in Psychiatry, and MD/MBA: Physicians on the New Frontier of Medical Management.   

The collection of essays has been previously published on a variety of healthcare profession websites and are organized into six focus areas:

1. Physician Issues
2. Professional Development
3. Education and Training
4. Health Policy
5. Patient Care
6. Practice Management

Lazarus' turn toward story telling was born of a crisis when he was laid off.

"Unemployment and age discrimination are two of many topics I began to explore using narrative medicine as a tool to communicate challenges most physicians confront at some point in their career," he said. "Depicting scenarios that are evergreen — ones that resonate with generations of physicians even as medical knowledge expands and is updated — was foremost on my mind. Although the generation gap is real and widening, the foundation of medicine and what it means to be a doctor has hardly changed since Hippocrates' time."

"For young physicians, it's like having a sage advisor in your pocket; for those further along, it's akin to having a wise peer assure us that we are not alone, as each of us has experienced similar influences and reacted accordingly," said Peter Angood, MD, FRCS(C), FACS, MCCM, FAAPL(Hon), president and CEO of AAPL.

 "And, we can each be challenged occasionally by these discerning reflections and questions posed."

About the American Association for Physician Leadership
The American Association for Physician Leadership (AAPL) is focused on the personal transformation of all physicians, and through them the organizations they serve. With the goal of improving patient outcomes, workforce wellness, and a refinement of all healthcare delivery, AAPL has remained the only association solely focused on providing professional development, leadership education, and management training exclusively for physicians. Since its founding in 1975, AAPL has educated 250,000+ physicians across 40 countries—including CEOs, chief medical officers, and physicians at all levels of healthcare. www.physicianleaders.org

SOURCE AAPL