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to show him my good will, make him see he was wrong and convince him to avoid making hasty decisions and accept dialogue. I had no luck at all with this strategy, because the man simply had no respect for things like science, truth, honesty or people's lives. I realized I had no way of pleading to his conscience or to his feelings, because he had none. He just kept on acting impulsive and moody. His "views" were constantly different from mine, even in minor matters, but, of course, he was the authority on everything, not me. He did such things just to harass me, to make me bend in front of him, and to show everybody that he alone was the holder of the absolute truth and power. He often told me (and also spread it around) that I was "too cheeky".

Second strategy: looking for friends. I decided to try and speak to my colleagues, make them see that what our boss was doing was very wrong and unacceptable, and that we had the right to defend our patients, our institution and ourselves. I was hoping to get some attitude from them, some allies. I used to tell them: "If there's at least two of us, we are already more than one!" But, alas! All I could get were some pathetic whispered complains. Everybody was either incredibly frightened, naive or manipulated! Even his wife, who knew him well and detested him, was manipulated by him. When I tried to approach her as a possible ally, she said: "I know how you feel. However, he's also done a lot of good things for you" Unbelievable! I felt utterly disgusted.

Third strategy: minimize my requests. I told him: "Let me take care of as little as two or three patients, as you please, but just let these be my patients. Let me make my own decisions, as I believe it's right!" No way! He would leave me alone for a short while, then start harassing me again; he just couldn't accept losing control of the slightest thing. And, besides, his point was not so much about controlling things as controlling me!

Fourth strategy: fool him. I told him once: "You have a lot of power, money and prestige. Don't you think that treating people like you do will lower your authority and your reputation? You don't need to "show your muscles" all the time". This shrewd strategy had a small effect: from that day on, he cooled down a little bit, and obviously tried to better control his temper. His temper yes, but not his personality. That he could not change, even if he wanted to.

Fifth strategy: prove him he needed me more than I needed him. I refused to

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