Expected Miracles: Surgeons at Work

Cast of Characters Preface: Some Words for Social Scientists Acknowledgments Introduction: The Surgical "Miracle" 1. The Art, Craft, and Science of Miracles The Good Surgeon: Colleagues' Evaluations Looking Upward from the Table: A Patient's-Eye View Caring and Healing Can a Bad Person Be a Good Surgeon? 2. The Temperament of Surgeons "Be Ballsy: Do It!" Surgery as Ritual Drama The Price: The "Paranoia" of Surgeons The Price for Patients 3. The Fellowship of Surgeons The Fellowship Informal Learning during Training The Morality Play 4. Costing Out Miracles: The Business of Surgery Three Surgeons in Private Practice An Exemplary Surgeon in a Prepaid Health Plan "Full-Time" Men 5. A Day with a Compassionate Young Surgeon The Day The Burden 6. Let's Go for It! 7. Deadly Surgical Sins Vices of Excess Generative Sins Defects, or Character Flaws Deficiencies Judging Sins 8. It's No Fun Anymore Fun and War Games No Fun "The Disenchantment of the World" The Bureaucratization of Charisma The Erosion of Charisma Horror Stories: The Patient as Enemy 9. Expected Miracles What of Patients? Expecting Miracles Coda: The Research Process Beginnings Access Refused Entree Sample and Methods Notes Glossary Bibliography Index