Emergency Doctor

Rating:
Summary: An idealistic perspective
Review: A very enjoyable, quick read. What struck me the most about this book was the differences in perspective since the time of it's writing (1987)--it mentions patients that complain about doctors wearing gloves when that is now standard, and expected, procedure. It describes the infancy of managed care and all it's depersonalization of those it's supposed to protect and care for. And most of all, it describes doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff who always put the patient first, who see their jobs as noble and go about it completely humble and without ego. Perhaps exposure to such tv shows as ER and Chicago Hope in more recent years have given laymen a more cold/cynical view of things, but some times the professionals in this book seem almost too good to be true. On the other hand, the emergencies described are fascinating and compelling.

Rating:
Summary: Good, But Outdated
Review: Graphic and well-written, this book held my interest--most of the time. The different stories are extremely interesting, and at times, completely horrific. The maggots and lice had me swallowing bile. A wonderful look into what doctors and nurses REALLY deal with. I only have two complaints about the book. One is that it really slowed down when we weren't in the E.R. I skimmed over a lot of the doctors' personal and office life. My other complaint is that the book is outdated. Obviously, this can't be helped, but it was still annoying. In the 13 years since this book was written, so many medical advances have been made in different areas like AIDS and drug overdoses. If you don't care about all this, then the book will probably be a good read for you. I'm sure that the medical problems doctors see have remained the same, it's just that the treatments have changed. You'll still get a good idea about the horrors that show up at the emergency departments.

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: I like medical novels and found this one a really good read. Good beach book.