Johanna Shapiro, PhD, Desiree Lie, MD, MSEd
Doc in a Box, a novel by San Francisco Bay neurologist Robert A. Burton, is a redemptive tale of a physician, Dr. Webb Smith, who loses his way mightily, both personally and professionally, only to discover what matters most about life and doctoring. The title, in addition to summoning up dreadful images of Jack in the Box managed care models, also alludes to the good doctor’s sense of entrapment, of being “boxed in” so to speak, by his interpersonal relationships, money worries, and work.