Rheum After 5: Dr. David Pisetsky, Storyteller

Click here to listen to Dr. Pisetsky’s interview.

Meanwhile, Dr. Pisetsky doesn’t envision trying to write novels or memoirs, not even during retirement. He doesn’t want to devote a huge amount of time to projects that “will never see the light of day.” But that hasn’t stopped him from helping others. He’s currently helping a colleague develop a creative nonfiction book on medicine.

Looking back, he believes writing has played a significant role throughout his medical and academic career.

“As a writer, you think about what’s going on much more deeply because you’re putting together a story,” says Dr. Pisetsky. “One thing I learned is that patients always want to tell their story. Clinical encounters are usually rushed. Writing has taught me not to be in such a hurry. Let patients get out their story.”

Carol Patton, a freelance writer based in Las Vegas, writes the Rheum After 5 column for The Rheumatologist.

References

1. Pisetsky DS. Till death do us part. J Gen Intern Med. 1997 Nov;12(11):705–706.
2. Spencer DM, Reyna AG, Pisetsky DS. The binding of monoclonal and polyclonal anti-Z-DNA antibodies to DNA of various species origin. Int J Mol Sci. 2021;22(16):8931.

Editor’s note: Listen to Dr. Pisetsky talk more about writing on our website: www.the-rheumatologist.org.