A guide for patients and caregivers
Running the
Medical Maze
Making the Best of a Broken System
O. Sami Saydjari · Rami Saydjari, MD, FACS · Maria Maldonado, MD
A test result appears in your portal. The specialist can’t see the images. You’re still waiting to hear who will follow up. What do you do next?
This book is for patients facing an uncertain diagnosis or coordinating care across several clinicians, and for the people helping them.
Explore the book For agents & publishersUnpublished nonfiction manuscript · Proposal and sample chapters available on request
For readers
When your care stalls
Prepare for the visit
Turn scattered notes into a short symptom timeline and bring the questions you most need answered.
Follow tests and referrals
Find out who will review the result, what it might change, and when to call if you haven’t heard back.
Weigh the options
Ask what each treatment could accomplish, what it would ask of you, and when to reconsider the plan.
Use AI with care
Learn how to organize records and prepare questions while checking the output and protecting private information.
A tool from the book
Before you leave the visit
If a test or referral is ordered, write down the answers to these three questions:
- Who will review the result or arrange the appointment?
- When should I expect to hear back?
- Who should I call if that date passes?
Keep the answers with your visit notes so you know where to start if the plan stalls.
Three perspectives on getting care
O. Sami Saydjari brings systems engineering and patient advocacy. Rami Saydjari, MD, FACS brings the perspective of a retired general surgeon who has also navigated complex care as a patient. Maria Maldonado, MD brings primary care experience and a focus on continuity, communication, and access.
Publishing inquiries
For agents & publishers
Running the Medical Maze is practical nonfiction for patients and family caregivers navigating unresolved symptoms, an uncertain diagnosis, or care spread across several clinicians. It combines case studies, clinical perspectives, and tools readers can use at their next appointment.
- Category
- Practical health nonfiction and patient advocacy
- Primary audience
- Patients with unresolved symptoms and family members helping coordinate their care
- What distinguishes the book
- It follows the decisions patients face when a diagnosis remains uncertain, a test result goes unaddressed, or a referral stalls. The authors draw on systems engineering, surgery, and primary care.
- Available for review
- Book proposal and sample chapters by request
For representation or acquisition inquiries, contact Rami Saydjari.
Request publishing materials