True Stories From the Hospitals of Madison, Bangkok

The readers who connect most deeply with Physicians' Untold Stories are often those in Madison, Bangkok and beyond who are in the midst of suffering — terminal diagnoses, recent losses, chronic pain, and the exhausting uncertainty of illness. For these readers, the book is not entertainment. It is medicine for the soul — a prescription for the kind of healing that no pharmacy can fill.

Dr. Scott Kolbaba

About the Author

Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD is an internist at Northwestern Medicine in Wheaton, Illinois. He interviewed more than 200 physicians about their most extraordinary experiences.

Book cover

Physicians' Untold Stories

by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD4.5 stars (1018 reviews)

Miraculous experiences doctors are hesitant to share with their patients, or ANYONE!

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"I shivered. I cried. I read some out loud to the spouse. Please write more." — Amazon Review

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Medical Fact

Adults take approximately 20,000 breaths per day without conscious thought.

Physician Burnout & Wellness Near Madison, Bangkok

Physicians practicing in Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand work at the intersection of modern medicine and experiences that resist explanation. In conversations that rarely leave the break room or the on-call suite, doctors in and around Madison, Bangkok have reported encounters with phenomena that their training never prepared them for — from patients who describe verifiable details about events that occurred while they were clinically dead, to deathbed visions shared simultaneously by multiple family members, to recoveries that defy every prognostic model available.

The medical community in Madison, Bangkok includes physicians across every stage of their careers — residents navigating the exhaustion of training, mid-career practitioners balancing clinical demands with family life, and veteran physicians carrying decades of experiences that challenge the boundaries of conventional medicine. Burnout touches all of them differently, but a common thread runs through: the desire to remember why they chose medicine in the first place, and the rare but profound moments that remind them.

Physician Burnout by Specialty

Percentage reporting at least one symptom (Medscape, 2024)

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Medical Fact

Hippocrates, the "father of medicine," was the first physician to reject superstition in favor of observation and clinical diagnosis.

Physician Wellness, Grief & Finding Meaning Near Madison, Bangkok

Midwest winters near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand impose a seasonal isolation that has historically accelerated the development of self-care traditions. Farm families who couldn't reach a doctor for months developed their own medical competence—setting bones, stitching wounds, managing fevers with willow bark and prayer. This tradition of medical self-reliance persists in the Midwest and influences how patients interact with the healthcare system.

Midwest medical students near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand who choose family medicine over higher-paying specialties do so with full awareness of the financial sacrifice. They're choosing to be the physician who delivers babies, manages diabetes, splints fractures, and counsels grieving widows—all in the same afternoon. This choice, driven by a commitment to comprehensive care, is the foundation of Midwest healing.

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Medical Fact

The thyroid gland, weighing less than an ounce, controls the metabolic rate of virtually every cell in the body.

Faith, Medicine & the Unexplained in Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand

The Midwest's Catholic Worker movement near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand applies Dorothy Day's radical hospitality to healthcare through free clinics, respite houses, and accompaniment programs for the terminally ill. These faith-based healers don't distinguish between the worthy and unworthy sick—they serve whoever appears at the door, because their theology demands it. The exam room becomes an extension of the communion table.

Midwest funeral traditions near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand—the visitation, the church service, the graveside committal, the reception in the church basement—provide a structured healing process for grief that modern medicine's emphasis on individual therapy cannot replicate. The communal funeral, with its casseroles and coffee and shared tears, heals the bereaved through sheer social saturation. The Midwest grieves together because it has always healed together.

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Did You Know?

The term "intensive care unit" was first used in the 1960s at Baltimore City Hospital.

Ghost Stories and the Supernatural Near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand

Great Lakes maritime ghosts have a peculiar relationship with Midwest hospitals near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand. Sailors pulled from freezing Lake Superior or Lake Michigan were often beyond saving by the time they reached shore hospitals. These drowned men are said to return during November storms—the month the lakes claim the most ships—arriving at emergency departments with water dripping from coats, seeking treatment for hypothermia that set in a century ago.

The Midwest's meatpacking industry created hospitals near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand that treated injuries of industrial-scale brutality: amputations, lacerations, and chemical burns that occurred daily in the slaughterhouses. The ghosts of these workers—immigrant laborers from a dozen nations—are said to appear in hospital corridors with injuries that glow red against their translucent forms, a grisly reminder of the human cost of the nation's food supply.

Types of Phenomena in the Book

Distribution across 26 physician accounts

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Did You Know?

The first organ to develop in a human embryo is the heart, which begins forming about 18-19 days after conception.

Watch Dr. Kolbaba Share These Stories

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Did You Know?

Dr. Kolbaba considers the courage of the physicians who shared their stories to be the true miracle of the book.

Bangkok: Where History, Medicine, and the Supernatural Converge

Thailand has one of the world's richest ghost traditions, and Bangkok is its spiritual center. The story of Mae Nak Phra Khanong—a woman who died in childbirth but whose ghost continued to care for her husband—is Thailand's most beloved ghost story, and the shrine at Wat Mahabut draws thousands of devotees daily. Spirit houses (san phra phum) stand outside virtually every building in Bangkok, from skyscrapers to homes, offering shelter to displaced spirits. The Thai concept of phi (ghosts/spirits) is deeply embedded in daily life, with dozens of distinct spirit types recognized in Thai folklore. Monks are regularly called to bless new buildings, and amulets believed to offer protection from malevolent spirits are a major industry. The Siriraj Hospital forensic museum adds to Bangkok's macabre reputation, displaying preserved remains and crime scene evidence that blur the line between medical education and the supernatural.

Bangkok has evolved from a city reliant on traditional Thai medicine to a global medical tourism powerhouse. King Chulalongkorn founded Siriraj Hospital in 1888—Thailand's first modern hospital—after losing his son to dysentery. Today, Bangkok attracts over 2.4 million medical tourists annually, with hospitals like Bumrungrad International offering world-class care at competitive prices. Thai traditional medicine, recognized by the WHO, incorporates herbal remedies, massage, and spiritual healing practices that date back centuries. The Siriraj Medical Museum, known colloquially as the 'Museum of Death,' houses the mummified body of serial killer Si Ouey and preserved anatomical specimens used for medical education since the 1920s. Bangkok is also a leading center for gender-affirming surgery, with Thai surgeons considered among the world's most experienced.

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About the Book

The book's publication led to Dr. Kolbaba being invited to participate in documentary projects about near-death experiences.

Notable Locations in Bangkok

Sathorn Unique Tower: This 49-story abandoned skyscraper, left unfinished after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, is considered one of Bangkok's most haunted buildings, with reports of ghostly apparitions and a shrine at its base maintained to appease restless spirits.

The Baiyoke Sky Hotel: Bangkok's tallest hotel is said to be built on land once used as a cemetery, and guests have reported ghostly encounters on certain floors, particularly in the older sections of the building.

Wat Mahabut: This temple on the banks of Phra Khanong Canal is dedicated to the ghost of Mae Nak, Thailand's most famous ghost—a woman who died in childbirth but continued living with her husband, unaware she was dead—and draws thousands of visitors who come to pay respects and ask for blessings.

Siriraj Hospital: Founded in 1888 by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), Siriraj is the oldest and largest hospital in Thailand, located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, and houses the Siriraj Medical Museum, which includes a forensic medicine collection and preserved specimens.

Bumrungrad International Hospital: Founded in 1980, Bumrungrad is one of the world's largest private hospitals, treating over 1.1 million patients annually from 190 countries and making Bangkok a global leader in medical tourism.

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About the Book

The physicians in the book represent diverse backgrounds — men and women, young and old, from multiple ethnic and religious backgrounds.

How This Book Can Help You

For rural physicians near Madison, Bangkok, Central Thailand who practice alone or in small groups, this book provides something urban doctors take for granted: professional companionship. The solo practitioner who's seen something inexplicable in a farmhouse bedroom at 2 AM has no grand rounds to present at, no colleague down the hall to confide in. This book is the colleague, the grand rounds, the reassurance that they're not alone.

Physicians' Untold Stories book cover — by Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD

Reader Ratings Distribution

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Research Finding

Gratitude practices — keeping a gratitude journal — have been associated with 10% better sleep quality in clinical trials.

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Discover the Stories Medicine Never Says Out Loud

Physicians' Untold Stories by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD4.5 stars from 1018 readers.

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Physicians' Untold Stories by Dr. Scott Kolbaba

Amazon Bestseller

The Stories Medicine Never Told You

Over 200 physicians interviewed. 26 true stories of ghost encounters, near-death experiences, and miraculous recoveries that will change the way you think about life, death, and what lies beyond.

By Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD — 4.5★ from 1,018 ratings on Goodreads