Dancing with Mr. D.
This is an extraordinary memoir by a doctor working in a nursing home for the terminally ill. The patients, some young, many old, are described with considerable empathy. They are ordinary people who just happen to be very dying. Some face the prospect with apathy, some deny it, some accept it gracefully while others rage against it.
We follow Keizer through his days as he listens to his patients’ stories, documents their battles with disease, and sees them take their own lives in order to die with dignity. The counterpoint to all this is provided by the trio of doctors with whom Keizer works, whose outlooks encompass detachment, despair, and a naive faith in the power of medicine. Scattered throughout are Keizer’s brilliant, often startling meditations on the nature of his work, shedding new light on such topics as the placebo effect, the failure of cancer research, and the inscrutable way our minds are anchored in our brains. Dancing with Mr. D. is an inspiring and powerful narrative that vividly outlines issues we will all confront when we make our final journey.
“Those looking for a clear path through the euthanasia maze will not find it here; they will, however, meet a unique and curious mind, possessed by a physician with a conscience.”
