Taking the Pulse of Compassion: A Doctor Diagnoses Her Career

By Sharon Youcha

"Dr. Youcha has written a beautiful memoir about the high points of her life as a physician. Her story traces the physician's journey from idealistic student and resident caring for the underserved to physician coping with the realities of practice. Through it all we see her searching for ways to reach her potential as a compassionate caregiver. She reaches that potential with heart and soul. It is both illuminating and inspiring to accompany her on that journey."

Dennis H. Novack, MD, Professor of Medicine, Associate Dean of Medical Education, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sharon Youcha
• Release date: Oct 27, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310169762

Sharon Youcha

Dr. Sharon Youcha graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in obstetrics and gynecology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. She has a Master's degree in Applied Psychology and additional training in psychiatry. Her work with the Navajo, studying home birth in Holland, and observing underwater deliveries in France broadened her approach to caring for women. Adjunct Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, she teaches empathy, compassion, and professionalism to medical students.

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Accolades for Taking the Pulse of Compassion

Dr. Sharon Youcha takes your breath away. In her fascinating and resonant memoir, Dr. Youcha invites the reader to accompany her on a journey that spans the globe, including medical school in New Haven, home and underwater births in Holland and France, teaching in China, volunteering on a Navajo reservation, two residencies, private practice, counseling other physicians, and establishing a prize for compassionate care in medicine. A tour de force by an extraordinary physician, writer, educator, world traveler, and lindy hopper, Taking the Pulse of Compassion: A Doctor Diagnoses Her Career will capture and heal your heart.

—Laura Liberman, MD, author of I Signed as the Doctor: Memoir of a Cancer Doctor Surviving Cancer, Director of Faculty Development, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York

I was deeply touched by the stories in this book. Sharon is one of the most talented and compassionate physicians I know. Her worldwide travels, experiences, and learnings were driven by her compassion and desire to better serve those in need. Sharon has a profound understanding of the human condition, and her gentleness, sensitivity, and fun-loving nature make the world a better place every single day. She teaches professionalism and compassionate communication to medical students and educates practicing physicians in how to avoid burnout—and she truly lives what she teaches.

—Jeff Levy, MD, Founder and CEO, Case Network, Assistant Professor, Department of OBGYN, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

With keen intellect and a generous heart and spirit, Dr. Sharon Youcha has globally championed the cause for compassionate care for women. From the beginning of her career to the present, she has understood not only the sacredness of the patient’s body but also that she is treating the whole person: body, mind, heart, and soul.

—Mariah Fenton Gladis, MSS, LCSW, BCD, author of Tales of a Wounded Healer, Founder, Pennsylvania Gestalt Center, Malvern, Pennsylvania

Dr. Youcha’s memoir emphasizes the importance of compassionate human values as an integral part of good medical care.

—Ruth Wilf, CNM, PhD, Lifecycle Woman Care, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania

Dr. Sharon Youcha has been a friend and inspiration to me for close to twenty-five years. Her powerful memoir reveals the human element, indeed the very heartbeat, of the healing encounter. In these pages the reader is welcomed into the inner experience of a passionately devoted caregiver as she relays how witnessing and taking part in patient care have shaped her as a physician and, perhaps even more, as a fellow human being. Taking the Pulse of Compassion is destined to be required reading for all students of the healing arts, and in my opinion it is a book that belongs on the shelf of anyone responsible for the care of others.

—Lisa Joy Tuttle, MA, BCC, CSS, Executive Skills and Career Coach and director of the Mindful Self-Management(r) program at the Penn Adult ADHD Treatment and Research Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Sharon taught me what it really means to take care of patients, not just their physical symptoms but their whole being. During our residency training we took care of a young pregnant woman who was experiencing a flare of systemic lupus erythematosis, an autoimmune disease. The patient had been hospitalized for several weeks and was threatening to sign out against medical advice. These were the days when there was no limit on duty hours. Interns were on call every third night, and post-call; most wanted nothing more than to get some sleep before coming back for another long day. Not Sharon. To encourage the patient to stay in the hospital long enough to complete treatment, Sharon, post-call, arranged for the patient to get a pass to leave the hospital for a few hours. Then she took the patient shopping, paying for the items herself. Even at this early juncture in her training, Sharon had more insight and compassion than most health care providers.

—Joanne N. Engel, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine and Microbiology and Immunology, Chief Division of Infectious Disease, University of California, San Francisco, California

Taking the Pulse of Compassion is an excellent recounting of a compassionate physician’s struggles and joys in caring for herself and her patients. It is a must read for patients and physicians.

—Jane Zendarski, DO, Faculty Physician, Good Samaritan Family Medicine Residency, Lebanon, Pennsylvania

This poignant memoir presents a series of intimate vignettes from the life and career of an admired colleague and dear friend who is a dedicated, passionate, and compassionate women’s health physician. Sharon chronicles her life transitions from student to committed physician/patient advocate and ultimately, to a patient facing her own serious illness with grace and strength.

—Kathryn Krantz, MD, FACOG, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Dr. Sharon Youcha has written a moving book about her many journeys as a person, physician, and healer. In this engaging series of stories from her career experiences, we see her life unfold and her knowledge, compassion, and kindness blossom.

—Jane Rachel Kaplan, MPH, PhD, Psychologist, Berkeley, California

An American OBGYN, Sharon visited Amsterdam regularly to observe the Dutch obstetrical system, where home birth plays a normal part.

When she became discouraged by the medicalization of birth in the United States, she would call me and come to observe my home birth practice.