For a decade, Linda Clarke and Dr. Michael Cusimano had offices across
from one another at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. She worked in
Clinical Ethics and he was a staff neurosurgeon. They knew one another
to say hello, to nod as they passed one another on the stairs, to wish
each other a Merry Christmas. Michael's patients sat in the chairs along
that shared hallway, waiting for their appointment with him. For ten
years, Linda heard their talk outside her door, smiled at them as she
passed by, tried to give them their privacy. She was always impressed by
the things people endured.
Ten years into her work, Linda got sick; she left her job and, weeks
later, she sat in one of those hallway chairs, waiting for her
appointment with Dr. Cusimano. In the blink of an eye, she was a
neurosurgery patient and he was her surgeon.
Linda and Michael wrote In Two Voices together: it is the intimate
account of Linda's surgery with Michael as her surgeon. The story builds
a piece at a time as Linda and Michael tell each other their experience
and then respond to one another's writing. As the relationship shifts
from one of patient and surgeon to one of Linda and Michael as
colleagues and friends, they encounter surprises as their trust and
mutual understanding develop. Here is an unprecedented view into the
experiences of illness, care, and compassion, an intimate picture of the
experiences, challenges, skills, and commitment of a surgeon. The worlds
of both surgeon and patient are framed by a most critical and delicate
surgical procedure.
