Careworn: A Memoir

By Vivian B. Minckoff and Minckoff M.D.

Inquisitive but anxious only child, perpetual student, dedicated doctor, loving wife and mother, concerned adult daughter, bereft widow-these are the roles one woman filled as a caregiver to her patients and family. The juggling wasn't easy. She committed herself to pursuing a career in medicine (research, teaching, and practice) until its demands plus personal considerations became overwhelming. "Careworn: A Memoir" tells the story of Dr. Vivian Minckoff's attempted coping, burnout, and ultimate reinvigoration. She finally learns that finding balance in one's life can prove to be a difficult task. But as her hard-won experience, insights, and wisdom reveal, the effort is well worth making. Her book's intent is to spur others on this quest. Dr. Minckoff saw firsthand some major deficiencies in how we train America's future physicians in our medical system. Few changes in the schooling and treatment of young doctors have occurred during the past fifty years. Dr. Minckoff's memoir is also inherently an advocacy for these much-needed improvements. Vivian Minckoff (pen name), M.D., is an accomplished psychiatrist and an awarded medical researcher and teacher. She completed her pre-med work as a psychology major at Duke University and then worked for ten years in the federal civil service as a policy analyst (plus an M.S. in Governmental Administration from The George Washington University). Next she earned her medical doctorate at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and her Master of Public Health and Doctor of Science degrees at The Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Minckoff completed her clinical medical training at University of Georgia for internship, Boston University School of Medicine for psychiatry residency, and in the Harvard system for a geriatric psychiatry fellowship. Besides becoming a practicing psychiatrist, she also completed a Hopkins residency and Board certification in general preventive medicine. Her research and teaching specialty was epidemiology, principally public mental health. Altogether, Dr. Minckoff has published nearly twenty-five scientific journal articles and a book surveying Medicare's utilization review practices. She has also written several as-yet-unpublished pieces in unrelated genres, including poetry, children's stories, and adult nonfiction. Careworn: A Memoir is her first venture in memoir writing. Dr. Minckoff has survived two marriages, raising three children, extended eldercare of three family members, a full-time solo private medical practice, some part-time jobs, and now full-time retirement. Her passions are dance exercise, silk floral design, playing with her two cockatoos, and grant writing for The Nora Minckoff Dancers.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1727717384
• ISBN13: 9781727717389
• Release Date: October 2018
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 242 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.5"