Almost everybody has heard of the best-selling book ‘This
is going to hurt’ by Adam Kay. But
are there other medical autobiographies out there that are equally as good or
maybe even better? These are my top 5 picks.
Trust me I’m a junior doctor by Max Pembleton. Another
diary from a junior doctor but more uplifting than the Adam Kay version mainly
because Max is surrounded by fellow junior doctors who all support one another.
It only covers his first year in training whereas Adam’s book spanned a lot
longer but I enjoyed it more as a result.
Hard pushed: a midwife’s story by Leah Hazard. A brilliant
autobiography that every aspiring midwife should read as well as all of us who
are parents. The usual story of a hard pressed NHS is alongside a range of
personal stories of different women that Leah has helped from the new age hippy
to the 15 year old child. Particularly poignant was the trafficked Chinese
woman who had been bundled out of a van and abandoned at 30 weeks pregnant. The
bravery of the midwives and the bravery of the birthing mothers and families
stand out a mile. Fascinating!
The Language of Kindness by Christie Watson. An eye
opening book on the career of a nurse. Christie has done almost all the
disciplines of nursing you can do from mental health to intensive care to
paediatrics. A lot of medical knowledge was gained reading this book! The
overwhelming sense you get is that it is the nurses who are the engines in the
NHS. They are the ones who explain what the doctor has really said, they are
the ones who pick up the pieces and good nurses make all the difference. And the
sign of a good nurse is, of course, kindness.
Seven signs of life by Aoife Abbey. This is written by a
doctor who works in intensive care and has previously penned for the British
Medical Association under the guise of ‘The Secret Doctor’. Taking the seven
emotions of fear, grief, joy, distraction, anger and hope Aoife weaves into
each emotion stories from her time on the wards and proves that to be a good
doctor you need to feel and deal with all these emotions. Anyone who wants to
work in medicine should read this. I loved it!
Being mortal by Atul Gawande. This is a good book for
both medical students and the wider general public. What is the role of a
doctor in terminal illnesses? Are they asking the right questions to discover
what their patients really want? Are families having the right discussions re
end of life care and is prolonging life the only goal or should we be looking
at quality of life even if that means shortening life? How can we do that in
today’s society? An excellent book that raises a lot of really thought
provoking questions.
I enjoyed all of these books and would highly recommend them
whether you are a budding medical student or just a member of the general
public who is fascinated to see how these amazing people cope with the big
questions that they are faced with every day.
Mrs Godden