The White House Doctor: My Patients Were Presidents: A Memoir

by Connie Mariano, Bill Clinton (Foreword by)

Overview

A riveting look into the personal lives of our presidents through the eyes of their White House doctor

"An interesting, behind-the-scenes glimpse of life at the White House." - Kirkus Reviews

Dr. Connie Mariano served 9 years at the White House under Presidents George H.W. Bush, William J. Clinton, and George W. Bush. She participated in world headline-making news events and traveled all over the world. She cared for visiting dignitaries and was charged with caring for all the members of the First Family. From flirting with King Juan Carlos of Spain to spending the night on the Queen of England's yacht, Dr. Mariano glimpsed a glittering and powerful celebrity that few ever see.

White House Doctor is a fascinating look into what goes on behind closed doors at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312534844
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	06/07/2011
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	1,130,454
Product dimensions:	5.36(w) x 8.26(h) x 0.86(d)

About the Author

In 1992, DR. CONNIE MARIANO became the first military woman in American history to be appointed White House doctor. The founder of the Center for Executive Medicine, a medical concierge practice providing presidential-quality medical care to CEOs and their families, she now lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Foreword Former President Bill Clinton xiii

1 Sweet Dreams 1

2 Destined for Duty 13

3 The Steward's Daughter 26

4 The President Will See You Now 43

5 One of the Guys 60

6 The New Face of the White House 72

7 Change Is Our Friend 85

8 The Presidential Road Show 103

9 Life in the Kill Zone 122

10 The King and I 135

11 The White House Bag Lady 156

12 The House of Sorrow 174

13 Rough Seas Ahead 191

14 Eye of the Storm 208

15 It Takes a Village 223

16 My First Family 244

17 A Star Is Worn 260

18 Doctor's Progress Notes 278

Editorial Reviews

…provides a peek into the tedium of treating the president's every cough, sniffle and golf-course-induced blister. And then some.
—The Washington Post

Aaron Leitko

A memoir by a Navy physician whose patients were U.S. presidents and their families. Rising up the ranks from captain to rear admiral during her service at the White House, Dr. Mariano was the first woman and first Filipino-American to become the physician to a president and the director of the White House medical unit. She writes of her experiences with humor and justifiable pride. This is no fly-on-the-wall tell-all, although she does comment on the "tall, slender, long-haired beauties" who used to preen in front of President Clinton-they were called "POTUS bait" by the staff. While there were only minor alarms and excitements during her nine years on the job-Bush I's last year and Clinton's two terms-she faced some challenging moments and passed with flying colors through tough security-training exercises, countermanding her former boss's instructions when he refused to relinquish his job and brushing off snide remarks that she benefited from a personal relationship with the president. Though she was the "wrong sex, wrong color, even wrong height [and] didn't look like the stereotypical White House doctor," Mariano persevered, with special help from the "silent servant class at the White House . . . the people of every day attended to the leader of the free world in his private quarters." As director of the medical unit, she instituted a number of changes to improve the standard of care, including 24/7 on-site medical staffing and updated treatment protocols. She traveled with more than 130 overseas presidential trips and many times worked grueling hours, making the painful choice to sacrifice her own family time to serve two first families. Her retirement from the Navy in 2001 wassimultaneously a time of celebration and sadness. An interesting, behind-the-scenes glimpse of life at the White House. Launch party in Washington, D.C. Agent: Susan Crawford/Crawford Literary Agency

Kirkus Reviews

This doctor is a bit of a celebrity herself: the first military woman in U.S. history to be appointed White House doctor, the first female director of the White House medical unit, and the first Filipino-American to become a navy rear admiral. And though Mariano humbly bows to the bigger-than-life presidents—George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton—she cared for during eight years in Washington, it's her journey that's so remarkable. Having begun life in 1955 as the daughter of a U.S. Navy steward in the Philippines, she was appointed a White House physician by the navy in 1992, and her mettle was thoroughly tested during medical emergencies—and political storms. Whether helping to treat Bush's skin cancer or dispensing a Band-Aid on the golf course, accompanying the president on overseas trips or performing a Heimlich maneuver on a choking guest at a holiday gala, Mariano always kept her cool and her sense of humor, which she retains in this unusual inside look at the White House. 8 pages of color photos. (June 22)

Publishers Weekly