On Call: Three Doctors on the Front Line

The doctors whose lives and careers are viewed here by Carpineto ( R.N. ) are unusual on several counts--gender, race, area of specialty--yet the author claims they are also typical of Boston doctors in their very breadth and variety. Among the three are Yvonne Gomez-Carrion, a black-skinned obstetrician-gynecologist; Barbara Jean Coopes, a white pediatric intensivist; and James Menzoian, a white male vascular surgeon. As highly motivated, intelligent teenagers from encouraging families, they single-mindedly pursued their dreams to become doctors. By following their individual paths the three arrived at inner-city hospitals and clinics; crushing schedules coupled with administrative and academic duties often harmed their private lives. Yet, though not as well paid as private practitioners, they seem to feel sufficiently compensated by warm patient/doctor relationships, the excellent medical resources of the Boston area and, as this book records, the fulfillment of their goals. (July)