Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat »

Dr. David Dosa is a geriatrician and an assistant professor of medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. An essay he wrote for the New England Journal of Medicine was the basis of this book. Dr. Dosa lives with his family in Barrington, Rhode Island.

An otherwise ordinary cat, Oscar has the uncanny ability to sense when people are about to die. Adopted by staff members at Steere House nursing home when he was a kitten, the three-year-old cat has presided over the deaths of more than twenty-five nursing home residents thus far. His mere presence at the bedside is viewed by physicians and nursing-home staff as an almost absolute indicator of impending death, considered a blessing because it allows time to notify families that the end is near and because he provides companionship to those who would otherwise have died alone. Dr. Dosa gives us Oscar's story, using the cat and the stories of several patients to examine end-of-life care as it exists today. Heartfelt, inspiring, and sometimes even funny, this book allows listeners into a world that is often misunderstood and rarely seen from the outside.

Publishers Weekly

Dosa, a geriatrician with a strong aversion to cats, tells the endearing story of Oscar the cat, the aloof resident at a nursing home who only spends time with people who are about to die. Despite hearing numerous stories about Oscar's uncanny ability to predict when a patient's time is nearing, Dosa, ever the scientist, remains skeptical. Slowly, he starts to concede that there may be something special about Oscar. Dosa starts to pay more attention to the cat's decidedly odd behavior, noticing that Oscar seeks out the dying, snuggles with the patient and family members until the patient passes; with others, he smells the patient's feet, sits outside a closed door until admitted, or refuses to leave a dying patient's bed. Dosa discovers how powerfully Oscar's mere presence reassures frightened or grieving family. Ultimately, the good doctor realizes that it doesn't matter where Oscar's gift comes from; it's the comfort he brings that's important. This touching and engaging book is a must-read for more than just cat lovers; anyone who enjoys a well-written and compelling story will find much to admire in its unlikely hero. (Feb.)