A powerful account of what has happened to the bedrock of the NHS, the GP system. Whitaker gives us a series of subtle and graphic stories that illustrate the complexity of the doctor-patient relationship and of modern medical practice at the ground level . . . The book is essential - and highly readable -- HENRY MARSH - New Statesman

If the NHS is to survive as a model of health-care for another 75 years, it needs thinkers and champions like Dr Whitaker to challenge policy and to ask how the system can reinvent itself. What is a Doctor? is a call to review, renew and revitalise the way we provide medicine, and to ensure that individualised care remains at the heart of the NHS -- KATHRYN MANNIX, author of WITH THE END IN MIND

Phil Whitaker knows the business of being a doctor inside out, and his moving and thought-provoking memoir of how the job has changed is essential reading for anyone interested in the future of the NHS -- DAVID NOTT, bestselling author of WAR DOCTOR

With meticulous analysis, deep vocational understanding and a palpable compassion for the human stories at the heart of all this, What Is a Doctor? is an essential intervention in the urgent conversation about the future of healthcare in this country -- POLLY MORLAND

Calm, knowledgeable, and clear, Phil Whitaker is the GP everyone would like to have, and his prescription for the health service is full of wisdom and kindness. I hope it will be read by everyone concerned about how we care for one another, now and in the future -- GAVIN FRANCIS, author of ADVENTURES IN HUMAN BEING and RECOVERY

This remarkable book shares profound insights into many of the problems facing modern medicine and offers a hopeful way forward - resuscitating the humanity that healthcare desperately needs. Simply brilliant -- SIR DAVID HASLAM, past chair of NICE and author of SIDE EFFECTS

If just one member of the government could be persuaded to read this book, there might be hope for a reinvigorated NHS and for its beleaguered professionals and its worried patients -- IONA HEATH, President of the Royal College of General Practitioners 2009-2012