Author: Anne McCarthy Strauss
Age Group: Adult
Genre: Womens Fiction
Release Date: September 29, 2013
Published by: Booktrope Publishing
Format: Ebook and Paperback
Pages: Approx. 325
Guest Post/Excerpt Sponsored by:
Jennifer Gilbert at Booktrope Publishing
Book Blurb:
While under the care of her pulmonologist after a life-threatening asthma attack, Heather Morrison enters into an affair with her doctor. This affair violates the state’s code of conduct and his medical treatment violates the Hippocratic oath. Heather’s life is shattered as a result. After the doctor terminates the relationship, Heather begins research for her own healing, and armed with this information, she initiates a civil lawsuit. Although it is a work of fiction, A Medical Affair was extensively researched. A Medical Affair is a critical book for women who want to make educated decisions regarding their relationships with their doctors.
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Guest Post...
Non-Consensual Sex is a Sin
by Anne McCarthy Strauss
Author of A Medical Affair
Non-Consensual Sex is a Sin
by Anne McCarthy Strauss
Author of A Medical Affair
It’s a sin for a married medical doctor to have sex with a current patient. Not only is it a sin, it is a violation of medical ethics and a civil offense. Every doctor knows this. Hardly any patients do. That’s why doctors have been getting away with this insidious form of abuse for centuries. Nobody talks about it, but it happens all the time.
Twelve percent of medical doctors admit to having had sex with at least one of their patients. I’m talking about the kind of sex that the woman believes to be consensual. She feels special for having been singled out by a man she trusts and respects as much as she does her doctor.
But, the truth is, that because of the fiduciary nature of the doctor-patient relationship, it is ethically and legally impossible for a patient to consent to having an affair with her doctor. A Medical Affair is the first novel to explain to the reader that when he or she is approached by their personal physician as a lover, they are not being flattered, they are being victimized.
Whether the affair lasts for months, years or for one encounter, it is usually the doctor who breaks it off. After all, he is extremely busy, probably married, and is surrounded by women who would be equally flattered to be his next victim.
Victim? Exactly. To repeat: Because of the fiduciary nature of the doctor-patient relationship, it is ethically and legally impossible for a patient to consent to having an affair with her doctor.
A Medical Affair is the story of a fictitious character who does her homework. After a six-month emotionally charged affair with Dr. Jeffrey Davis, Heather Morrison is dumped unceremoniously over a cup of hot chocolate in a New York City park. Addicted to drugs Jeff has prescribed for her, she leans on a cast of loving friends and a dedicated attorney to find her way through the abyss that is the Office of Professional Medical Conduct (OPMC) and the court system.
I have a passion for this subject because I have seen this happen way too many times. And although there is an occasional leak about a doctor who is brought to justice for such VILE behavior, if every story was reported and publicized, it would be in the media every day.
A Medical Affair takes the reader on the rollercoaster ride from the first unmistakable glance through the passion, the angst of the breakup and the heroic efforts of one brave young woman who risks her world to bring her abusive doctor to justice.
Excerpt
A Medical Affair...
A Medical Affair...
“It happened,” Heather told Trista as they stood side by side trying to decipher the meaning of an abstract painting.
“In the painting?” Trista frowned at the image.
“No. In his office. That’s why I’m late.”
“Oh!” Trista grabbed Heather’s arm. “You mean it?” She leaned closer to whisper in her friend’s ear. “You had sex with him?”
“Right.”
“I need a cigarette for this,” Trista said. “Let’s go outside.”
Heather linked arms with Trista as they headed from the gallery and whispered, “Why do you always have to smoke after I have sex?”
Laughing hysterically, the two women made their way through the gathering of artists, dealers, and collectors at the opening night exhibit until they reached the exit. When they stepped outside the gallery, they were met by a strong breeze and about half a dozen smokers lining the pavement.
Trista struggled against a gust of summer breeze to light her cigarette. “You had sex with this guy? I thought you had an appointment.”
“Well…yeah. Exactly.” Heather pushed the hair from her face, but the humid breeze blew it back immediately.
“You did it in his office?”
“Yes, I just told you.”
“That’s right. How was it?” Trista inhaled deeply.
“Amazing. Completely amazing.” Heather leaned her head back against the glass pane of the gallery’s storefront and gazed at the halo of a nearby streetlamp. A smile turned up the corners of her mouth as she remembered.
“It’s always amazing when they’re married or otherwise unavailable,” Trista said.
“I wasn’t even thinking about that. He is an amazing lover.” Heather hugged herself to keep warm. “And the position! I was lying on his exam table and he was standing. I’ve never felt a man so deep inside me.”
“Well, duh!” Trista said.
“Duh?”
“They have tables like that in sex clubs for that very reason,” Trista whispered.
“You’ve gone to sex clubs?” Heather replied loudly. A few heads turned and looked toward the two women.
Trista linked arms with Heather and took a few steps away. “Nooooo! I’ve read about it.”
Heather inhaled the smoke-filled air. “I think you’ve read about everything imaginable.” She adjusted a purse strap that was digging into her shoulder. “Or heard about it on NPR.”
“I know about a lot of stuff.” Trista exhaled, waving the smoke away from her friend’s face. “And, honey, I don’t want to burst your bubble, but I don’t think doctors are supposed to do that.”
“Doctors aren’t supposed to have sex? Or affairs?”
“Of course they have affairs. But not with their patients. It’s unethical.”
“How is it unethical?”
“I saw it on some news show. Actually, it’s not only unethical; it’s illegal in some states. Because you put yourself into their care.”
“Oh, come on! You’re telling me I had illegal sex? Like with a male prostitute?”
“No, of course not,” Trista replied.
“How do you know all this stuff?” Heather asked. “Sex club furnishings? Doctors having sex with their patients?”
“I saw a show—20/20? One of those. The doctor-patient relationship is considered a fiduciary relationship.”
“You mean, like, because he’s the superior being, he’s supposed to know better?” Heather asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Yeah, pretty much. Look online. Google ‘professional boundary violations.’ That was one of the terms they used a lot in the episode.”
“You’re such a news junkie!” Heather said, giving her friend a playful shove.
“Have you talked to him since?” Trista asked.
“God, it only happened an hour ago! But actually, he did call when I was in the taxi on my way over here,” Heather beamed.
“Good post-coital etiquette. Nice touch.” The smoke rings she was blowing dissipated almost immediately after they escaped her lips into the humid air. “So now what happens?”
Heather lowered her head. “I have no idea.”
About the Author...
A lifelong New Yorker, Anne lives on Long Island with her husband and their two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. The mother of one son, she has written for both consumer and trade magazines including Old House Journal, Waterfront Home & Design, Design Trade Magazine, Design New England, Distinction, Log Home Design Ideas and Florida Design Review. She has been a regular contributor to Martha’s Vineyard Magazine and Vineyard Style. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA).
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Great blog all the best
ReplyDeleteThank you. Same to you. :)
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