Complications - A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science

Atul Gawande

ISBN 10: 1861974132 / ISBN 13: 9781861974136

Published by Profile Books Ltd, London, 2002

About this Item

Stories about becoming a surgeon which explore how mistakes occur and what happens when medicine encounters the inexplicable. 269pp. Gilt lettering to spine, red endpapers. Boards slightly bowed and minor sunning to edges, otherwise very good copy with no inscriptions. Unclipped DJ has minor edge and surface wear, otherwise very good. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Seller Inventory # 012465

Bibliographic Details

Title: Complications - A Surgeon's Notes on an ...

Publisher: Profile Books Ltd, London

Publication Date: 2002

Binding: Grey Cloth Boards

Condition: Very Good

Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

Edition: First Edition.

Book Type: Book

About this title

Synopsis:

This is a stunningly well-written account of the life of a what it is like to cut into people's bodies and the terrifying - literally life and death - decisions that have to be made. There are accounts of operations that go wrong; of doctors who go to the bad; why autopsies are necessary; what it feels like to insert your knife into someone.

Review:

Gently dismantling the myth of medical infallibility, Dr. Atul Gawande's Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science is essential reading for anyone involved in medicine--on either end of the stethoscope. Medical professionals make mistakes, learn on the job, and improvise much of their technique and self-confidence. Gawande's tales are humane and passionate reminders that doctors are people, too. His prose is thoughtful and deeply engaging, shifting from sometimes painful stories of suffering patients (including his own child) to intriguing suggestions for improving medicine with the same care he expresses in the surgical theater. Some of his ideas will make health care providers nervous or even angry, but his disarming style, confessional tone, and thoughtful arguments should win over most readers. Complications is a book with heart and an excellent bedside manner, celebrating rather than berating doctors for being merely human. --Rob Lightner