
What Doctors in Olympic, Phoenix Have Seen That Science Can't Explain
Medical professionals are among the most cautious people on earth when it comes to making claims they can't support. That's precisely what makes Physicians' Untold Stories so compelling. In Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona, readers are encountering a book where doctors describe deathbed visions, miraculous recoveries, and moments of connection that defy clinical explanation—and they're doing so under their own names, with their reputations on the line. Dr. Scott Kolbaba's bestseller has earned over 1,000 Amazon reviews, a 4.5-star rating, and praise from Kirkus Reviews. For readers who have lost someone, who fear losing someone, or who simply need to believe that the story doesn't end at the last breath, this book offers something irreplaceable: credible hope.

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.

Physicians' Untold Stories
by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD • 4.5 stars (1018 reviews)
Miraculous experiences doctors are hesitant to share with their patients, or ANYONE!
Order on Amazon →Dr. Kolbaba interviewed 200 courageous physicians who came forward with 26 of the most miraculous experiences of their careers.
Medical Fact
Physicians who read non-medical books regularly score higher on measures of empathy and communication skills.
Physician Burnout & Wellness Near Olympic, Phoenix
Physicians practicing in Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona 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 Olympic, Phoenix 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 Olympic, Phoenix 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)
Medical Fact
The human brain generates about 12-25 watts of electricity — enough to power a low-wattage LED lightbulb.
Ghost Stories and the Supernatural Near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona
The legend of La Llorona—the weeping woman—persists in Hispanic communities near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona and occasionally manifests in hospital settings. Pediatric nurses report hearing a woman crying in empty hallways near the children's ward, and Hispanic families who recognize the sound respond with specific prayers and protective rituals. Whether La Llorona is a genuine spirit or a cultural anxiety given spectral form, her presence in hospitals is medically relevant because it affects patient and family behavior.
The Southwest's UFO culture near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona—centered on Roswell but extending across the region—occasionally intersects with hospital ghost stories in unexpected ways. Some patients who report near-death or visionary experiences during hospitalization describe encounters with beings that don't fit conventional ghost or angel categories—luminous, non-human entities that communicate through thought rather than speech. Whether these are ghosts, aliens, or something else entirely depends on who's interpreting.
Medical Fact
Hospitals in Japan sometimes skip the number 4 in room numbers because the word for "four" sounds like the word for "death" in Japanese.
Near-Death Experiences Reported by Physicians Near Olympic, Phoenix
Researchers at the University of New Mexico near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona have proposed that the Southwest's unique electromagnetic environment—high-altitude ionospheric activity, tectonic stress from the Rio Grande Rift, and intense solar exposure—may contribute to the region's elevated NDE report rate. While the electromagnetic theory of consciousness remains speculative, the Southwest provides a natural laboratory for testing it.
Indigenous scholars at tribal colleges near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona are conducting NDE research within their own communities, applying culturally appropriate methodologies that Western researchers have historically lacked. These scholars—themselves members of the cultures they study—can access NDE accounts that outside researchers would never hear, producing data of unparalleled intimacy and depth. The Southwest's NDE research is being decolonized, one study at a time.
Did You Know?
Studies show that patients who bring a list of questions to their doctor's appointment receive significantly better care.
Physician Wellness, Grief & Finding Meaning Near Olympic, Phoenix
Traditional Diné (Navajo) healing near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona operates on the principle of hózhó—a concept that encompasses beauty, balance, harmony, and health. When a patient is out of hózhó, the healing ceremony restores it not through the addition of medicine but through the restoration of right relationship with the natural and spiritual world. Physicians who understand hózhó understand that their work is not to fix a body but to help a person find their way back to balance.
The Southwest's farmers' markets near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona function as community health interventions. The Navajo Nation's market programs, which accept SNAP benefits and provide nutrition education alongside locally grown produce, address food insecurity and diet-related disease through a culturally appropriate mechanism. Healing, in the Southwest, often begins at a folding table under a canvas canopy, with a basket of heirloom squash.
Physician Burnout by Specialty
Percentage reporting at least one symptom (Medscape, 2024)
Did You Know?
The average emergency department in the U.S. sees approximately 74,000 patients per year.
Phoenix: Where History, Medicine, and the Supernatural Converge
Phoenix's supernatural traditions blend Anglo-American ghost lore with Native American spiritual beliefs from the O'odham, Yavapai, and Apache peoples whose ancestral lands the city occupies. The Hohokam civilization, which built an extensive canal system in the Phoenix basin before mysteriously disappearing around 1450 AD, left behind ruins and artifacts that some believe carry spiritual energy. The Hotel San Carlos's ghost, Leone Jensen, is one of the most documented hauntings in Arizona, with hotel staff maintaining a logbook of guest encounters. The Arizona desert surrounding Phoenix has a long history of reported paranormal phenomena, including the famous 'Phoenix Lights'—a mass UFO sighting on March 13, 1997, witnessed by thousands of people including Governor Fife Symington, who publicly confirmed his sighting years later. Ghost towns scattered throughout the surrounding desert, remnants of mining boom-and-bust cycles, are popular destinations for paranormal investigators.
Phoenix's medical history is rooted in the city's reputation as a health destination. In the early 20th century, thousands of tuberculosis patients migrated to the dry Arizona desert seeking the 'cure' of arid air, and many of Phoenix's early healthcare facilities were originally tuberculosis sanitariums. This health migration helped drive the city's growth from a small agricultural town to a major metropolis. The Mayo Clinic's 1987 expansion to Scottsdale/Phoenix was a transformative event, bringing world-class medicine to the Southwest. The city has become an important center for research on heat-related illness, as Phoenix regularly experiences temperatures exceeding 115°F (46°C), and Banner Health has developed protocols for treating the hundreds of heat stroke victims who arrive at emergency rooms each summer. Phoenix's proximity to Native American communities, including the Gila River and Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Communities, has also made it a center for research on Type 2 diabetes, which affects these populations at the highest rates in the world.
Did You Know?
The first portable defibrillator was developed in 1965 by Frank Pantridge in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Watch Dr. Kolbaba Share These Stories
About the Book
Dr. Kolbaba often reminds audiences that the physicians in the book are not mystics or seekers — they are mainstream medical professionals.
Notable Locations in Phoenix
Hotel San Carlos: This 1928 downtown hotel, built on the site of the city's first schoolhouse, is reportedly haunted by the ghost of Leone Jensen, who jumped from the seventh floor in 1928, with guests reporting a ghostly blonde woman in 1920s clothing and unexplained crying on upper floors.
Rosson House Museum: This 1895 Victorian mansion in Heritage Square is said to be haunted by the spirits of the Rosson family, with docents reporting moving objects, phantom footsteps, and cold spots throughout the house.
Yuma Territorial Prison (nearby): The notorious 'Hell Hole' prison operated from 1876 to 1909 in the Arizona desert, where inmates suffered in extreme heat and harsh conditions, is considered one of the most haunted prisons in the Southwest.
Mayo Clinic Arizona: Opened in 1987 as the first Mayo Clinic expansion outside Rochester, Minnesota, this campus has grown into a nationally ranked medical center, bringing Mayo's integrated group practice model to the Southwest.
Banner University Medical Center Phoenix: The primary teaching hospital for the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix, and one of the largest academic medical centers in the Southwest.
About the Book
Dr. Kolbaba is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society — only the top medical students are inducted.
Medical Heritage in Arizona
Arizona's medical history is deeply intertwined with its reputation as a haven for tuberculosis patients in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The dry desert climate drew thousands of 'health seekers,' transforming Phoenix and Tucson into major medical centers. St. Luke's Hospital (now Valleywise Health Medical Center), founded in 1907, and Good Samaritan Hospital (now Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix), established in 1911, were both built partly to serve this influx of TB patients. The Desert Sanatorium in Tucson, opened in 1926, became a premier treatment facility and later evolved into Tucson Medical Center.
The University of Arizona College of Medicine, established in 1967 in Tucson, became a leader in integrative medicine under Dr. Andrew Weil, who founded the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine in 1994. The Mayo Clinic's Arizona campus, opened in Scottsdale in 1987, brought world-class tertiary care to the Southwest. The Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, founded in 1962, became one of the world's foremost centers for neurosurgical training and research, performing more brain surgeries annually than almost any other institution in the Western Hemisphere.
Reader Ratings Distribution
Based on 1,018 Goodreads ratings
Research Finding
Warm baths before bed improve sleep onset by 10-15 minutes and increase time spent in deep, restorative sleep.
Supernatural Folklore and Ghost Traditions in Arizona
Arizona's supernatural folklore draws from Navajo, Apache, and Hohokam traditions alongside frontier legends. The Navajo concept of the skinwalker (yee naaldlooshii)—a witch who can transform into an animal—pervades stories throughout the Navajo Nation in northeastern Arizona, and many residents refuse to discuss the subject for fear of attracting one. The Mogollon Monster, Arizona's version of Bigfoot, has been reported along the Mogollon Rim since the 1900s, with sightings near Payson and the pine forests of the Tonto National Forest.
The mining town of Jerome, perched on Cleopatra Hill, is considered one of the most haunted towns in America. The Jerome Grand Hotel, formerly the United Verde Hospital built in 1927, is said to be haunted by patients and miners who died there, with guests reporting a spectral woman in white and the sounds of a gurney rolling down empty hallways. Tombstone's Bird Cage Theatre, which operated from 1881 to 1889 during the town's Wild West heyday, reportedly hosts at least 26 documented ghosts. The Vulture Mine near Wickenburg, where 18 men were reportedly hanged from an ironwood tree, is another persistently haunted site.
Research Finding
Awe experiences — witnessing something vast and transcendent — have been linked to reduced inflammation (lower IL-6 levels).
Haunted Hospitals and Medical Landmarks in Arizona
Arizona State Hospital (Phoenix): Opened in 1887 as the Territorial Insane Asylum, this facility housed Arizona's mentally ill under harsh conditions for over a century. Reports from staff and visitors include disembodied screams from the older wings, doors opening and closing on their own, and a persistent cold spot in the hallway near the former hydrotherapy rooms where ice baths were administered.
Jerome Grand Hotel (formerly United Verde Hospital, Jerome): Built in 1927 as a hospital for copper miners, this five-story Spanish Mission-style building served patients until 1950. It was the largest poured-concrete building in the state. Guests at the now-hotel report the sound of a gurney rolling on its own, a woman in white appearing at the foot of beds, unexplained coughing from empty rooms, and the apparition of a maintenance man named Claude Harvey, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1935.
“Over 200 physicians interviewed. 26 of the most miraculous experiences of their careers, chronicled in one book.”
— Physicians' Untold Stories
How This Book Can Help You
Arizona's unique position as both a healing destination and a place of frontier danger creates a medical culture perfectly aligned with the themes in Physicians' Untold Stories. The Mayo Clinic's Scottsdale campus and Barrow Neurological Institute represent the kind of elite medical institutions where physicians encounter the inexplicable despite having every diagnostic tool available. Dr. Kolbaba's Mayo Clinic training connects him directly to Arizona's medical community, and the state's history of tuberculosis sanitariums—places where physicians watched patients make miraculous recoveries or slip away despite treatment—echoes the profound bedside mysteries that fill his book.
The Southwest's tradition of turquoise as a healing stone near Olympic, Phoenix, Arizona provides a material metaphor for this book's purpose. Turquoise is believed to protect the wearer, absorb negative energy, and promote healing. This book, similarly, offers a form of protection to readers facing illness and death—not through supernatural power, but through the reassurance that physicians have witnessed something beyond the clinical, and that what lies ahead may not be what we fear.

Reader Ratings Distribution
Based on 1,018 Goodreads ratings
“Sometimes all we need to do is believe. — From the introduction to Physicians' Untold Stories”
— Physicians' Untold Stories
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Discover the Stories Medicine Never Says Out Loud
Physicians' Untold Stories by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD — 4.5 stars from 1018 readers.
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