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Book Review Autumn 2004
Delivering Doctor Amelia Clinical psychologist Dan Shapiro would seem to have it all: a Harvard degree, a thriving practice at the University Medical Center in Tucson, a wife and daughter to whom he is devoted. But as he peels away the layers of his obstetrician patient's psyche, the Dr. Amelia of the title, we learn almost as much about him as we do about his patient. His fears, anxieties, doubts, strengths and weaknesses all emerge as he struggles with her dark depression and suicidal tendencies. Dr. Amelia Sorvino has rarely failed in her life. She's a rising star on the University of Arizona's obstetrical service. Pregnant women clamor to become her patient, for her to deliver the new life to her adoring clientele. But fail she does with when, after a prolonged and difficult labor, she somehow misses checking the fetal heart monitor and delays performing a necessary c-section. The baby develops cerebral palsy and, despite the expert's opinion that only 10% of such babies are a result of birth trauma, Dr. Sorvino blames herself. She obsesses over her mistake, carrying around the crucial fetal monitor strip in her purse. She gives up her practice, nearly gives up on her marriage and almost manages to kill herself. These two present a fascinating fulcrum of blame and guilt, of doctor and patient and of the apogee and nadir of modern psychotherapy. We hear the internal monologues of doctor and patient and we follow their activities. We invade their dreams, their desires, their feelings of self-doubt, their sexual and asexual thoughts. We learn that Dr. Shapiro has survived a near fatal illness, saved from Hodgkin's disease by a bone marrow transplant at age 19. Successful at procreating a daughter via his frozen, preserved sperm, he and his wife are now treading and dreading a similar frustrating path to have a second child. We find out about Dr. Sorvino's unlikely path to her profession. That both therapist and client are doctors and both are patients sets the tone of this tale of trial and ultimate resolution. Both are highly skilled practitioners of their specialty. Yet the feeling that "I'm a fraud, soon to be discovered" plagues them. Dr. Sorvino's life is in crisis. Dr. Shapiro is seized by fear that she will commit suicide largely due to his inadequate treatment. The resolution of this parallel problem is fascinating. One minor complaint. Dr. Sorvino's long narrations during therapy are in italics, harder to read than should be required. No reason that these cannot be in standard font. In summary, an informative and easy-to-read narrative about a problem rarely dealt with in lay terms. Recommended. |
