The real crisis in medicine today is not about economics, insurance, or managed care--it's about the loss of the fundamental human relationship between doctor and patient. In this wise and passionate book, one of our most eminent physicians reacquaints us with a classic notion often overlooked in modern medicine: health care with a human face, in which the time-honored art of healing guides doctors in their approach to patient care and their use of medical technology.

Drawing on four decades of practice as a cardiologist and a vast knowledge of literature and medical history, Dr. Lown...