Post Author: Patrick Hudson, MD

Patrick Hudson is a retired surgeon, psychotherapist, and author. Trained at Westminster Hospital Medical School in London, he practiced for decades in both the U.K. and the U.S. before turning his focus from surgical procedures to emotional repair—supporting physicians in navigating the hidden costs of their work and the quiet ways medicine reshapes identity. Patrick holds advanced degrees in counseling, liberal arts, and health care ethics, and is board certified in both surgery and coaching.
Through his national coaching practice, CoachingforPhysicians.com, he works with clinicians seeking clarity, renewal, and deeper connection in their professional lives. He also writes under CFP Press, a small imprint he founded for reflective writing in medicine.
His latest book, Ten Things I Wish I Had Known When I Started Medical School, was released in 2025 and became a #1 New Release in Medical Education & Training. To view his full catalog, visit his Amazon author page.

Patrick Hudson is a retired surgeon, psychotherapist, and author. Trained at Westminster Hospital Medical School in London, he practiced for decades in both the U.K. and the U.S. before turning his focus from surgical procedures to emotional repair—supporting physicians in navigating the hidden costs of their work and the quiet ways medicine reshapes identity. Patrick holds advanced degrees in counseling, liberal arts, and health care ethics, and is board certified in both surgery and coaching.
Through his national coaching practice, CoachingforPhysicians.com, he works with clinicians seeking clarity, renewal, and deeper connection in their professional lives. He also writes under CFP Press, a small imprint he founded for reflective writing in medicine.
His latest book, Ten Things I Wish I Had Known When I Started Medical School, was released in 2025 and became a #1 New Release in Medical Education & Training. To view his full catalog, visit his Amazon author page.
It’s not the easiest question to ask aloud—especially in medicine, where we pronounce death but rarely reflect on it.
We chart it. Certify it. Explain it.
But what does it mean to die?
For most of us, the word carries a double weight. It means to stop biologically. To cease. To end.
But it also means to vanish. To be forgotten. To be no longer seen, needed, or named.
As a surgeon, I saw death …
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