The Empathy Exams

The Empathy Exams
by Leslie Jamison

I had to check with my wife on whether she had ever heard of a “standardized patient” (an actor who plays the part of an ill patient for the benefit of training doctors), and she confirmed there is such a role.  Enter into the book The Empathy Exams, by Leslie Jamison, a series of short essays all focused on attempting to understand empathy.  Jamison’s essays explore: the medical practice rooms; a study of people who claim to have a disease called Morgellons (a controversial condition involving skin lesions and the belief that the skin is infected by bugs and other objects, like string); living on a dangerous border-section of Mexico; falling in love with a jailed murderer; and women and pain.  Can we feel someone else’s pain?  Jamison’s essays certainly show that we can.  Depth, clear writing, and fragility, all captured in this well written series of essays.