Notes from a Doctor's Pocket

Notes from a Doctor's Pocket

Author: Robert D. Lesslie

Publisher: Harvest House Publishers

Published: 2013-10-01

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 0736954805

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These Notes from a Doctor’s Pocket come from the decades of ER experience of bestselling author Dr. Robert Lesslie, whose routine faced him with times of grief or pain, relief or delight, life or death. Such everyday happenings and encounters gave rise to these vignettes—in which readers will meet up with the characters, coincidences, and complications common to the emergency room: characters like Freddy, who literally shoots himself in the foot coincidences like finally having the chance to hear what patients say to each other when doctors and nurses aren’t in the room complications such as dealing with parents who buy lottery tickets and alcohol instead of medicine for their little boy These heart-tugging, heart-lifting slices of life will prompt readers to search for opportunities to give the comfort of a touch, the grace of a kind word, or a prayer that brings hope and healing.


Book Synopsis Notes from a Doctor's Pocket by : Robert D. Lesslie

Download or read book Notes from a Doctor's Pocket written by Robert D. Lesslie and published by Harvest House Publishers. This book was released on 2013-10-01 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These Notes from a Doctor’s Pocket come from the decades of ER experience of bestselling author Dr. Robert Lesslie, whose routine faced him with times of grief or pain, relief or delight, life or death. Such everyday happenings and encounters gave rise to these vignettes—in which readers will meet up with the characters, coincidences, and complications common to the emergency room: characters like Freddy, who literally shoots himself in the foot coincidences like finally having the chance to hear what patients say to each other when doctors and nurses aren’t in the room complications such as dealing with parents who buy lottery tickets and alcohol instead of medicine for their little boy These heart-tugging, heart-lifting slices of life will prompt readers to search for opportunities to give the comfort of a touch, the grace of a kind word, or a prayer that brings hope and healing.


Counting Backwards: A Doctor's Notes on Anesthesia

Counting Backwards: A Doctor's Notes on Anesthesia

Author: Henry Jay Przybylo

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2017-11-14

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0393254445

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A moving exploration of the most common but most mysterious procedure in medicine. For many of the 40 million Americans who undergo anesthesia each year, it is the source of great fear and fascination. From the famous first demonstration of anesthesia in the Ether Dome at Massachusetts General Hospital in 1846 to today’s routine procedure that controls anxiety, memory formation, pain relief, and more, anesthesia has come a long way. But it remains one of the most extraordinary, unexplored corners of the medical world. In Counting Backwards, Dr. Henry Jay Przybylo—a pediatric anesthesiologist with more than thirty years of experience—delivers an unforgettable account of the procedure’s daily dramas and fundamental mysteries. Przybylo has administered anesthesia more than 30,000 times in his career—erasing consciousness, denying memory, and immobilizing the body, and then reversing all of these effects—on newborn babies, screaming toddlers, sullen teenagers, even a gorilla. With compassion and candor, he weaves his experiences into an intimate exploration of the nature of consciousness, the politics of pain relief, and the wonder of modern medicine. Filled with intensity and humanity, with moments of near-disaster, life-saving success, and simple grace, Counting Backwards is for anyone curious about what happens after we lose consciousness.


Book Synopsis Counting Backwards: A Doctor's Notes on Anesthesia by : Henry Jay Przybylo

Download or read book Counting Backwards: A Doctor's Notes on Anesthesia written by Henry Jay Przybylo and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2017-11-14 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A moving exploration of the most common but most mysterious procedure in medicine. For many of the 40 million Americans who undergo anesthesia each year, it is the source of great fear and fascination. From the famous first demonstration of anesthesia in the Ether Dome at Massachusetts General Hospital in 1846 to today’s routine procedure that controls anxiety, memory formation, pain relief, and more, anesthesia has come a long way. But it remains one of the most extraordinary, unexplored corners of the medical world. In Counting Backwards, Dr. Henry Jay Przybylo—a pediatric anesthesiologist with more than thirty years of experience—delivers an unforgettable account of the procedure’s daily dramas and fundamental mysteries. Przybylo has administered anesthesia more than 30,000 times in his career—erasing consciousness, denying memory, and immobilizing the body, and then reversing all of these effects—on newborn babies, screaming toddlers, sullen teenagers, even a gorilla. With compassion and candor, he weaves his experiences into an intimate exploration of the nature of consciousness, the politics of pain relief, and the wonder of modern medicine. Filled with intensity and humanity, with moments of near-disaster, life-saving success, and simple grace, Counting Backwards is for anyone curious about what happens after we lose consciousness.


Complications

Complications

Author: Atul Gawande

Publisher: Metropolitan Books

Published: 2003-04-01

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 1429972106

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A brilliant and courageous doctor reveals, in gripping accounts of true cases, the power and limits of modern medicine. Sometimes in medicine the only way to know what is truly going on in a patient is to operate, to look inside with one's own eyes. This book is exploratory surgery on medicine itself, laying bare a science not in its idealized form but as it actually is -- complicated, perplexing, and profoundly human. Atul Gawande offers an unflinching view from the scalpel's edge, where science is ambiguous, information is limited, the stakes are high, yet decisions must be made. In dramatic and revealing stories of patients and doctors, he explores how deadly mistakes occur and why good surgeons go bad. He also shows us what happens when medicine comes up against the inexplicable: an architect with incapacitating back pain for which there is no physical cause; a young woman with nausea that won't go away; a television newscaster whose blushing is so severe that she cannot do her job. Gawande offers a richly detailed portrait of the people and the science, even as he tackles the paradoxes and imperfections inherent in caring for human lives. At once tough-minded and humane, Complications is a new kind of medical writing, nuanced and lucid, unafraid to confront the conflicts and uncertainties that lie at the heart of modern medicine, yet always alive to the possibilities of wisdom in this extraordinary endeavor. Complications is a 2002 National Book Award Finalist for Nonfiction.


Book Synopsis Complications by : Atul Gawande

Download or read book Complications written by Atul Gawande and published by Metropolitan Books. This book was released on 2003-04-01 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A brilliant and courageous doctor reveals, in gripping accounts of true cases, the power and limits of modern medicine. Sometimes in medicine the only way to know what is truly going on in a patient is to operate, to look inside with one's own eyes. This book is exploratory surgery on medicine itself, laying bare a science not in its idealized form but as it actually is -- complicated, perplexing, and profoundly human. Atul Gawande offers an unflinching view from the scalpel's edge, where science is ambiguous, information is limited, the stakes are high, yet decisions must be made. In dramatic and revealing stories of patients and doctors, he explores how deadly mistakes occur and why good surgeons go bad. He also shows us what happens when medicine comes up against the inexplicable: an architect with incapacitating back pain for which there is no physical cause; a young woman with nausea that won't go away; a television newscaster whose blushing is so severe that she cannot do her job. Gawande offers a richly detailed portrait of the people and the science, even as he tackles the paradoxes and imperfections inherent in caring for human lives. At once tough-minded and humane, Complications is a new kind of medical writing, nuanced and lucid, unafraid to confront the conflicts and uncertainties that lie at the heart of modern medicine, yet always alive to the possibilities of wisdom in this extraordinary endeavor. Complications is a 2002 National Book Award Finalist for Nonfiction.


The Medicine

The Medicine

Author: Karen Hitchcock

Publisher: Black Inc.

Published: 2020-02-04

Total Pages: 233

ISBN-13: 1743821271

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What happens when a doctor kills a patient? Are GPs overprescribing antidepressants? Does ‘female Viagra’ work? What role can psychedelics and cannabis play in treating pain? What is sickness, and how much of it is in our heads? In The Medicine, Dr Karen Hitchcock takes us to the frontlines of everyday treatment, turning her acute gaze to everything from the flu season to dementia, plastic surgery to the humble sick day. In an overcrowded, underfunded medical system, she explores how more of us can be healthier, and how listening carefully to a patient’s experience can be as important as prescribing a pill. These dazzling essays show Hitchcock to be one of the most fearless and illuminating medical thinkers of our time – reasonable, insightful and deeply humane. ‘The Medicine is elegantly and startlingly wise about the body and the mind, the miracles and limits of modern medicine, the way we live now and the ways we don't. Read it and you will look at yourself differently. Not only that - you'll look at your doctor differently.’ —Don Watson ‘Karen Hitchcock does some of the best writing in Australia’ —Leigh Sales


Book Synopsis The Medicine by : Karen Hitchcock

Download or read book The Medicine written by Karen Hitchcock and published by Black Inc.. This book was released on 2020-02-04 with total page 233 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What happens when a doctor kills a patient? Are GPs overprescribing antidepressants? Does ‘female Viagra’ work? What role can psychedelics and cannabis play in treating pain? What is sickness, and how much of it is in our heads? In The Medicine, Dr Karen Hitchcock takes us to the frontlines of everyday treatment, turning her acute gaze to everything from the flu season to dementia, plastic surgery to the humble sick day. In an overcrowded, underfunded medical system, she explores how more of us can be healthier, and how listening carefully to a patient’s experience can be as important as prescribing a pill. These dazzling essays show Hitchcock to be one of the most fearless and illuminating medical thinkers of our time – reasonable, insightful and deeply humane. ‘The Medicine is elegantly and startlingly wise about the body and the mind, the miracles and limits of modern medicine, the way we live now and the ways we don't. Read it and you will look at yourself differently. Not only that - you'll look at your doctor differently.’ —Don Watson ‘Karen Hitchcock does some of the best writing in Australia’ —Leigh Sales


Letter to a Young Female Physician

Letter to a Young Female Physician

Author: Suzanne Koven

Publisher: National Geographic Books

Published: 2021-05-04

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 1324007141

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A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Best Book of 2021 A poignant and funny exploration of authenticity in work and life by a woman doctor. In 2017, Dr. Suzanne Koven published an essay describing the challenges faced by female physicians, including her own personal struggle with "imposter syndrome"—a long-held secret belief that she was not smart enough or good enough to be a “real” doctor. Accessed by thousands of readers around the world, Koven’s “Letter to a Young Female Physician” has evolved into a deeply felt reflection on her career in medicine. Koven tells candid and illuminating stories about her pregnancy during a grueling residency in the AIDS era; the illnesses of her child and aging parents during which her roles as a doctor, mother, and daughter converged, and sometimes collided; the sexism, pay inequity, and harassment that women in medicine encounter; and the twilight of her career during the COVID-19 pandemic. As she traces the arc of her life, Koven finds inspiration in literature and faces the near-universal challenges of burnout, body image, and balancing work with marriage and parenthood. Shining with warmth, clarity, and wisdom, Letter to a Young Female Physician reveals a woman forging her authentic identity in a modern landscape that is as overwhelming and confusing as it is exhilarating in its possibilities. Koven offers an indelible account, by turns humorous and profound, from a doctor, mother, wife, daughter, teacher, and writer who sheds light on our desire to find meaning, and on a way to be our own imperfect selves in the world.


Book Synopsis Letter to a Young Female Physician by : Suzanne Koven

Download or read book Letter to a Young Female Physician written by Suzanne Koven and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2021-05-04 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Best Book of 2021 A poignant and funny exploration of authenticity in work and life by a woman doctor. In 2017, Dr. Suzanne Koven published an essay describing the challenges faced by female physicians, including her own personal struggle with "imposter syndrome"—a long-held secret belief that she was not smart enough or good enough to be a “real” doctor. Accessed by thousands of readers around the world, Koven’s “Letter to a Young Female Physician” has evolved into a deeply felt reflection on her career in medicine. Koven tells candid and illuminating stories about her pregnancy during a grueling residency in the AIDS era; the illnesses of her child and aging parents during which her roles as a doctor, mother, and daughter converged, and sometimes collided; the sexism, pay inequity, and harassment that women in medicine encounter; and the twilight of her career during the COVID-19 pandemic. As she traces the arc of her life, Koven finds inspiration in literature and faces the near-universal challenges of burnout, body image, and balancing work with marriage and parenthood. Shining with warmth, clarity, and wisdom, Letter to a Young Female Physician reveals a woman forging her authentic identity in a modern landscape that is as overwhelming and confusing as it is exhilarating in its possibilities. Koven offers an indelible account, by turns humorous and profound, from a doctor, mother, wife, daughter, teacher, and writer who sheds light on our desire to find meaning, and on a way to be our own imperfect selves in the world.


MA Notes

MA Notes

Author: Cindi Brassington

Publisher: F.A. Davis

Published: 2020-05-19

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 1719642680

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This handy guide provides all the commonly used, but rarely memorized information you need in both the front and back office—from normal lab values and common medical abbreviations to dosage calculations, triage questions, and more.


Book Synopsis MA Notes by : Cindi Brassington

Download or read book MA Notes written by Cindi Brassington and published by F.A. Davis. This book was released on 2020-05-19 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This handy guide provides all the commonly used, but rarely memorized information you need in both the front and back office—from normal lab values and common medical abbreviations to dosage calculations, triage questions, and more.


Young Doctor's Notebook

Young Doctor's Notebook

Author: Mikhail Bulgakov

Publisher: Alma Books

Published: 2012-12-10

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 1847493157

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In this collection of short stories, drawing heavily from the author's own experiences as a medical graduate on the eve of the Russian Revolution, Bulgakov describes a young doctor's turbulent and often brutal introduction to his practice in the backward village of Muryovo. Using a sharply realistic and humorous style, Bulgakov reveals his doubts about his own competence and the immense burden of responsibility, as he deals with a superstitious and poorly educated people struggling to enter the modern age. This acclaimed collection contains some of Bulgakov's most personal and insightful observations on youth, isolation and progress. This edition also includes the famous piece 'Morphine' by Bulgakov.


Book Synopsis Young Doctor's Notebook by : Mikhail Bulgakov

Download or read book Young Doctor's Notebook written by Mikhail Bulgakov and published by Alma Books. This book was released on 2012-12-10 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this collection of short stories, drawing heavily from the author's own experiences as a medical graduate on the eve of the Russian Revolution, Bulgakov describes a young doctor's turbulent and often brutal introduction to his practice in the backward village of Muryovo. Using a sharply realistic and humorous style, Bulgakov reveals his doubts about his own competence and the immense burden of responsibility, as he deals with a superstitious and poorly educated people struggling to enter the modern age. This acclaimed collection contains some of Bulgakov's most personal and insightful observations on youth, isolation and progress. This edition also includes the famous piece 'Morphine' by Bulgakov.


The Laws of Medicine

The Laws of Medicine

Author: Siddhartha Mukherjee

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2015-10-13

Total Pages: 96

ISBN-13: 147678485X

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Essential, required reading for doctors and patients alike: A Pulitzer Prize-winning author and one of the world’s premiere cancer researchers reveals an urgent philosophy on the little-known principles that govern medicine—and how understanding these principles can empower us all. Over a decade ago, when Siddhartha Mukherjee was a young, exhausted, and isolated medical resident, he discovered a book that would forever change the way he understood the medical profession. The book, The Youngest Science, forced Dr. Mukherjee to ask himself an urgent, fundamental question: Is medicine a “science”? Sciences must have laws—statements of truth based on repeated experiments that describe some universal attribute of nature. But does medicine have laws like other sciences? Dr. Mukherjee has spent his career pondering this question—a question that would ultimately produce some of most serious thinking he would do around the tenets of his discipline—culminating in The Laws of Medicine. In this important treatise, he investigates the most perplexing and illuminating cases of his career that ultimately led him to identify the three key principles that govern medicine. Brimming with fascinating historical details and modern medical wonders, this important book is a fascinating glimpse into the struggles and Eureka! moments that people outside of the medical profession rarely see. Written with Dr. Mukherjee’s signature eloquence and passionate prose, The Laws of Medicine is a critical read, not just for those in the medical profession, but for everyone who is moved to better understand how their health and well-being is being treated. Ultimately, this book lays the groundwork for a new way of understanding medicine, now and into the future.


Book Synopsis The Laws of Medicine by : Siddhartha Mukherjee

Download or read book The Laws of Medicine written by Siddhartha Mukherjee and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2015-10-13 with total page 96 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essential, required reading for doctors and patients alike: A Pulitzer Prize-winning author and one of the world’s premiere cancer researchers reveals an urgent philosophy on the little-known principles that govern medicine—and how understanding these principles can empower us all. Over a decade ago, when Siddhartha Mukherjee was a young, exhausted, and isolated medical resident, he discovered a book that would forever change the way he understood the medical profession. The book, The Youngest Science, forced Dr. Mukherjee to ask himself an urgent, fundamental question: Is medicine a “science”? Sciences must have laws—statements of truth based on repeated experiments that describe some universal attribute of nature. But does medicine have laws like other sciences? Dr. Mukherjee has spent his career pondering this question—a question that would ultimately produce some of most serious thinking he would do around the tenets of his discipline—culminating in The Laws of Medicine. In this important treatise, he investigates the most perplexing and illuminating cases of his career that ultimately led him to identify the three key principles that govern medicine. Brimming with fascinating historical details and modern medical wonders, this important book is a fascinating glimpse into the struggles and Eureka! moments that people outside of the medical profession rarely see. Written with Dr. Mukherjee’s signature eloquence and passionate prose, The Laws of Medicine is a critical read, not just for those in the medical profession, but for everyone who is moved to better understand how their health and well-being is being treated. Ultimately, this book lays the groundwork for a new way of understanding medicine, now and into the future.


What Doctors Feel

What Doctors Feel

Author: Danielle Ofri

Publisher: Beacon Press

Published: 2013-06-04

Total Pages: 232

ISBN-13: 0807073334

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A look at the emotional side of medicine—the shame, fear, anger, anxiety, empathy, and even love that affect patient care Physicians are assumed to be objective, rational beings, easily able to detach as they guide patients and families through some of life’s most challenging moments. But doctors’ emotional responses to the life-and-death dramas of everyday practice have a profound impact on medical care. And while much has been written about the minds and methods of the medical professionals who save our lives, precious little has been said about their emotions. In What Doctors Feel, Dr. Danielle Ofri has taken on the task of dissecting the hidden emotional responses of doctors, and how these directly influence patients. How do the stresses of medical life—from paperwork to grueling hours to lawsuits to facing death—affect the medical care that doctors can offer their patients? Digging deep into the lives of doctors, Ofri examines the daunting range of emotions—shame, anger, empathy, frustration, hope, pride, occasionally despair, and sometimes even love—that permeate the contemporary doctor-patient connection. Drawing on scientific studies, including some surprising research, Dr. Danielle Ofri offers up an unflinching look at the impact of emotions on health care. With her renowned eye for dramatic detail, Dr. Ofri takes us into the swirling heart of patient care, telling stories of caregivers caught up and occasionally torn down by the whirlwind life of doctoring. She admits to the humiliation of an error that nearly killed one of her patients and her forever fear of making another. She mourns when a beloved patient is denied a heart transplant. She tells the riveting stories of an intern traumatized when she is forced to let a newborn die in her arms, and of a doctor whose daily glass of wine to handle the frustrations of the ER escalates into a destructive addiction. But doctors don’t only feel fear, grief, and frustration. Ofri also reveals that doctors tell bad jokes about “toxic sock syndrome,” cope through gallows humor, find hope in impossible situations, and surrender to ecstatic happiness when they triumph over illness. The stories here reveal the undeniable truth that emotions have a distinct effect on how doctors care for their patients. For both clinicians and patients, understanding what doctors feel can make all the difference in giving and getting the best medical care.


Book Synopsis What Doctors Feel by : Danielle Ofri

Download or read book What Doctors Feel written by Danielle Ofri and published by Beacon Press. This book was released on 2013-06-04 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A look at the emotional side of medicine—the shame, fear, anger, anxiety, empathy, and even love that affect patient care Physicians are assumed to be objective, rational beings, easily able to detach as they guide patients and families through some of life’s most challenging moments. But doctors’ emotional responses to the life-and-death dramas of everyday practice have a profound impact on medical care. And while much has been written about the minds and methods of the medical professionals who save our lives, precious little has been said about their emotions. In What Doctors Feel, Dr. Danielle Ofri has taken on the task of dissecting the hidden emotional responses of doctors, and how these directly influence patients. How do the stresses of medical life—from paperwork to grueling hours to lawsuits to facing death—affect the medical care that doctors can offer their patients? Digging deep into the lives of doctors, Ofri examines the daunting range of emotions—shame, anger, empathy, frustration, hope, pride, occasionally despair, and sometimes even love—that permeate the contemporary doctor-patient connection. Drawing on scientific studies, including some surprising research, Dr. Danielle Ofri offers up an unflinching look at the impact of emotions on health care. With her renowned eye for dramatic detail, Dr. Ofri takes us into the swirling heart of patient care, telling stories of caregivers caught up and occasionally torn down by the whirlwind life of doctoring. She admits to the humiliation of an error that nearly killed one of her patients and her forever fear of making another. She mourns when a beloved patient is denied a heart transplant. She tells the riveting stories of an intern traumatized when she is forced to let a newborn die in her arms, and of a doctor whose daily glass of wine to handle the frustrations of the ER escalates into a destructive addiction. But doctors don’t only feel fear, grief, and frustration. Ofri also reveals that doctors tell bad jokes about “toxic sock syndrome,” cope through gallows humor, find hope in impossible situations, and surrender to ecstatic happiness when they triumph over illness. The stories here reveal the undeniable truth that emotions have a distinct effect on how doctors care for their patients. For both clinicians and patients, understanding what doctors feel can make all the difference in giving and getting the best medical care.


The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules

The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules

Author: Clifton K. Meador MD

Publisher: Square One Publishers, Inc.

Published: 2020-04-02

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13: 0757054935

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Clearly the science of medicine has progressed by leaps and bounds over the last twenty years—from computerized surgery to genetic modification. Yet medicine is more than just a science. It is also an art. As medical students complete their education, however, they may find that their training has been focused solely on the mechanics of diagnosis and treatment. While this scientific knowledge is fundamental to proper healthcare, it can overlook the importance of interacting with patients. In an attempt to refocus on how vital it is for doctors to consider their patients in full, Dr. Clifton K. Meador has written The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules. It offers simple and concise suggestions to humanize the practice of medicine. In this book, Dr. Meador draws on his nearly sixty-year medical career for nuggets of advice with both compassion and humor. Although there may not be a defined medical disease behind every physical symptom, Dr. Meador reminds us that the reason behind a symptom may be found if a doctor observes and listens carefully to a patient. He believes an effective physician treats a patient, not just a patient’s disease. The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules offers insightful rules that address a host of topics, which include developing a rapport with patients, treating dementia, and prescribing drugs. Designed for any healthcare professional, these short rules are easily understood and (mostly) non-technical. Here is a small sampling of Dr. Meador’s advice, from the sage and somber to the clever and sometimes controversial. While listening to a patient, do not do anything else. Just listen. Stop drug use in treatment whenever possible. If impossible, cease a patient’s use of as many drugs as possible whenever possible. Just because you know a lot of physiology, biochemistry, and anatomy does not mean you know anything about people. If all you listen to are symptoms, then all you will hear from your patients are symptoms. In addition to his own rules, Dr. Meador has included advice offered by some of the past giants of medicine. It is no coincidence that their words echo the message of this book, which gets to the true center of the healing arts.


Book Synopsis The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules by : Clifton K. Meador MD

Download or read book The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules written by Clifton K. Meador MD and published by Square One Publishers, Inc.. This book was released on 2020-04-02 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clearly the science of medicine has progressed by leaps and bounds over the last twenty years—from computerized surgery to genetic modification. Yet medicine is more than just a science. It is also an art. As medical students complete their education, however, they may find that their training has been focused solely on the mechanics of diagnosis and treatment. While this scientific knowledge is fundamental to proper healthcare, it can overlook the importance of interacting with patients. In an attempt to refocus on how vital it is for doctors to consider their patients in full, Dr. Clifton K. Meador has written The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules. It offers simple and concise suggestions to humanize the practice of medicine. In this book, Dr. Meador draws on his nearly sixty-year medical career for nuggets of advice with both compassion and humor. Although there may not be a defined medical disease behind every physical symptom, Dr. Meador reminds us that the reason behind a symptom may be found if a doctor observes and listens carefully to a patient. He believes an effective physician treats a patient, not just a patient’s disease. The Little Book of Doctors’ Rules offers insightful rules that address a host of topics, which include developing a rapport with patients, treating dementia, and prescribing drugs. Designed for any healthcare professional, these short rules are easily understood and (mostly) non-technical. Here is a small sampling of Dr. Meador’s advice, from the sage and somber to the clever and sometimes controversial. While listening to a patient, do not do anything else. Just listen. Stop drug use in treatment whenever possible. If impossible, cease a patient’s use of as many drugs as possible whenever possible. Just because you know a lot of physiology, biochemistry, and anatomy does not mean you know anything about people. If all you listen to are symptoms, then all you will hear from your patients are symptoms. In addition to his own rules, Dr. Meador has included advice offered by some of the past giants of medicine. It is no coincidence that their words echo the message of this book, which gets to the true center of the healing arts.