Steven Bentley, M.D. is a board certified ER doctor with a career spanning more than thirty years in various North Carolina emergency departments. His journey began in the mid-1970’s when he chose to pursue a career in medicine. In his youthful perspective he came to regard doctors as the good guys, the ones who healed people and saved lives. He knew that he would be one of those good guys one day. He describes the real world of emergency medicine from the viewpoint of a practicing emergency physician. In the dynamic world of emergency medicine, there is a great deal of pain, blood and tragedy, but there is also hope, compassion and excitement – for both the patients and the staff. “His is a genuine, sympathetic voice, quick to praise or condemn doctors and nurses as deserved, while also offering a mature understanding of the oddities of human behavior” - Foreword Clarion “A License to Heal” is a pleasure to read, and will enlighten readers as to the inner workings of the emergency room, and the practice of medicine in general. - Foreword Clarion “Bentley emerges as a compassionate doctor who sympathizes with his patients, including those who have allowed their bodies to fall apart” - Kirkus Reviews “The writing is effective; Bentley emerges as the doctor everyone would want in a medical emergency. An invaluable inside look at the realities of the U.S. health care system.” - Kirkus Reviews