Overview

Hippocratic Oath is a collection of stories from the professional lives of two Polish doctors: Basia and her stepfather, Stefan, during WW2 and later under the Communist regime. Basia, who has lived in Australia since 1979, narrates their stories. In the first few, The Skull and Don't Throw a Stone at Them, she recalls events from her studies at the Medical Academy in Lodz that had a profound influence on her views and her professional attitude. 'I was like a sponge soaking up those experiences and emotions', she writes in one of those stories. The other stories, such as Goodbye Doctor and On Duty, describe episodes from her professional life under Communism. Stefan's stories tell of his participation in the 1939 campaign of WW2, treating wounded members of the underground army during the German occupation and of his life as a doctor in Communist Poland. Some of the stories, such as Goodbye Doctor, are sad. Some, such as Good Care, in which Basia recalls her experience as a female doctor dealing with unexpected gender issues, have sparks of humour. All the stories show people in their real lives. They also show the doctors' personal battles while they confront various situations that test their professional and ethical principles.

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Reviews

Hippocratic Oath is a very impressive collection. The stories are short but, such is the poetic quality of Barbara Westwood's writing, they contain so much more than might, at first, seem obvious. Precise, lyrical, richly metaphoric, her language invites reading through the processes of association. The frames are multiple, the connections evocative, and, with particular history at its fingertips, the collection's reach exceeds its grasp. Dr Brian Edwards

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