A Final Arc of Sky: A Memoir of Critical Care
Jennifer Culkin - 2009
The deafening thrum of the helicopter announces the unknown perils and potential havoc that await. A critical care and emergency flight nurse, Culkin treats patients who are most often in mortal danger. Aboard the Agusta, she is entrusted with the life of a seventeen-year-old pulled from the wreckage of a headon collision as his father calls out a wrenching plea from below; she cares for a middle-aged man who is bleeding to death internally, remembering the four daughters who have kissed him goodbye, possibly for the last time. It is the arduous and acute struggle to keep her patients alive en route to the hospital that is Jennifer Culkin's most profound duty.Culkin is no stranger to death and its dramas, or the urgency that accompanies them. Her memoir pulls us into the neonatal intensive care unit, where she labors to ventilate an eleven-ounce preemie, the smallest human she has ever cared for. The tenuous lines between life and death lead us to the pediatric intensive care unit, where she looks after children seemingly too small to contain their devastating illnesses.As her personal life begins to mirror the intensity of her work, Culkin writes poignantly of attending her dying mother, who refuses to decide whether to prolong her life. She recounts with tenderness and exasperation the experience of looking after her widowed father, who faces death with dramatic stubbornness, ignoring medical advice and rejecting even basic treatment. Tempering her profound insights with humor, Culkin relates her taste for the edge, her own risky gambles, and her ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis. Finally, Culkin takes us back to flying, with the dramatic and redemptive stories of her colleagues who have perished in helicopter crashes in their very exceptional line of duty.A Final Arc of Sky does more than plunge readers into the chaos of emergency medicine; it is also a masterful reflection on the pivotal moments of our lives, on the beautiful fragility of our mortality.
To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System
Linda T. Kohn - 2000
That's more than die from motor vehicle accidents, breast cancer, or AIDS--three causes that receive far more public attention. Indeed, more people die annually from medication errors than from workplace injuries. Add the financial cost to the human tragedy, and medical error easily rises to the top ranks of urgent, widespread public problems.To Err Is Human breaks the silence that has surrounded medical errors and their consequence--but not by pointing fingers at caring health care professionals who make honest mistakes. After all, to err is human. Instead, this book sets forth a national agenda--with state and local implications--for reducing medical errors and improving patient safety through the design of a safer health system.This volume reveals the often startling statistics of medical error and the disparity between the incidence of error and public perception of it, given many patients' expectations that the medical profession always performs perfectly. A careful examination is made of how the surrounding forces of legislation, regulation, and market activity influence the quality of care provided by health care organizations and then looks at their handling of medical mistakes.Using a detailed case study, the book reviews the current understanding of why these mistakes happen. A key theme is that legitimate liability concerns discourage reporting of errors--which begs the question, "How can we learn from our mistakes?"Balancing regulatory versus market-based initiatives and public versus private efforts, the Institute of Medicine presents wide-ranging recommendations for improving patient safety, in the areas of leadership, improved data collection and analysis, and development of effective systems at the level of direct patient care.To Err Is Human asserts that the problem is not bad people in health care--it is that good people are working in bad systems that need to be made safer. Comprehensive and straightforward, this book offers a clear prescription for raising the level of patient safety in American health care. It also explains how patients themselves can influence the quality of care that they receive once they check into the hospital. This book will be vitally important to federal, state, and local health policy makers and regulators, health professional licensing officials, hospital administrators, medical educators and students, health caregivers, health journalists, patient advocates--as well as patients themselves.First in a series of publications from the Quality of Health Care in America, a project initiated by the Institute of Medicine
Psychnotes: Clinical Pocket Guide
Darlene D. Pedersen - 2005
The 4th Edition of this AJN Book-of-the-Year award winner has been thoroughly updated to deliver even more resources and tools, plus new DSM-5 content. "Psych Notes is packed with all of the essential content necessary to REVIEW (you should also have expanded knowledge of this content) and pass the ANCC PMHNP certification exam. You will be astonished with the depth and breadth of information contained in this easy to read and use (spiral bound) book. Be sure to access the online information that accompanies this book, too as it contains a grid comparing the changes from DSM-IV and DSM-5!" --Sandra Hannon-Engel, Ph.D., RN, CNS, PMHNP, Assistant Professor, William F. Connell School of Nursing, Boston College, Boston, MA. "It's a pretty good book for both nursing students and practicing RN's. No matter what specialty you're in you'll come across patients that are psychologically unstable and this book gives you a quick and easy reference to your needs. Everything is laid out in simple form and focuses on the most pertinent topics in psych." - Jim Astapan, Amazon.com "Very good source for fast references." - Ileana, Amazon.com "An amazingly complete collection of all that pertains to psych/mental health care. An easy to use resource and a wonderful review." - Camille Grosso, Ph.D., R.N.
Confessions of a GP (The Confessions Series)
Benjamin Daniels - 2010
He is frustrated, confused, baffled and, quite frequently, very funny. He is also a GP. These are his confessions.A woman troubled by pornographic dreams about Tom Jones. An 80-year-old man who can't remember why he's come to see the doctor. A woman with a common cold demanding (but not receiving) antibiotics. A man with a sore knee. A young woman who has been trying to conceive for a while but now finds herself pregnant and isn't sure she wants to go through with it. A 7-year-old boy with 'tummy aches' that don't really exist.These are his patients.Confessions of a GP is a witty insight into the life of a family doctor. Funny and moving in equal measure it will change the way you look at your GP next time you pop in with the sniffles.
Heroes, Villains & Velodromes: Chris Hoy & Britain's Track Cycling Revolution
Richard Moore - 2008
How does he do it? And why? What drives him to put his body through the physical and mental hurdles to become the best in the world? This is also the story of an extraordinary year in the life of an extraordinary sportsman, one which started with his best-ever world championships in Mallorca—where, for the first time in his career, he became a double world champion—continued with his attempt on the world kilometer record in La Paz, Bolivia, went on to Japan where he spent three months riding the crazy keirin circuit, before returning to training at the world-class Manchester velodrome in the buildup to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.By shadowing Hoy through a season with the British track cycling team, author Richard Moore has gained an unembellished insight into the mind of a world champion. He has also attained unprecedented levels of access to the key members of the all-conquering British team (which smashed all records and dominated the 2007 world championships) and support staff, including top coaches, world-renowned psychiatrists, doctors (where the subject of drug abuse is an ever-present shadow), and the pivotal characters behind the scenes. Combining his forensic knowledge of the cycling world with his acclaimed skills as a tenacious investigative journalist, Moore captures the mood of the British team and explores an area of professional sport that has rarely been seen before.
Every Patient Tells a Story: Medical Mysteries and the Art of Diagnosis
Lisa Sanders - 2009
Lisa Sanders, author of the monthly New York Times Magazine column "Diagnosis," the inspiration for the hit Fox TV series House, M.D.The experience of being ill can be like waking up in a foreign country. Life, as you formerly knew it, is on hold while you travel through this other world as unknown as it is unexpected. When I see patients in the hospital or in my office who are suddenly, surprisingly ill, what they really want to know is, ‘What is wrong with me?’ They want a road map that will help them manage their new surroundings. The ability to give this unnerving and unfamiliar place a name, to know it–on some level–restores a measure of control, independent of whether or not that diagnosis comes attached to a cure. Because, even today, a diagnosis is frequently all a good doctor has to offer.A healthy young man suddenly loses his memory–making him unable to remember the events of each passing hour. Two patients diagnosed with Lyme disease improve after antibiotic treatment–only to have their symptoms mysteriously return. A young woman lies dying in the ICU–bleeding, jaundiced, incoherent–and none of her doctors know what is killing her. In Every Patient Tells a Story, Dr. Lisa Sanders takes us bedside to witness the process of solving these and other diagnostic dilemmas, providing a firsthand account of the expertise and intuition that lead a doctor to make the right diagnosis.Never in human history have doctors had the knowledge, the tools, and the skills that they have today to diagnose illness and disease. And yet mistakes are made, diagnoses missed, symptoms or tests misunderstood. In this high-tech world of modern medicine, Sanders shows us that knowledge, while essential, is not sufficient to unravel the complexities of illness. She presents an unflinching look inside the detective story that marks nearly every illness–the diagnosis–revealing the combination of uncertainty and intrigue that doctors face when confronting patients who are sick or dying. Through dramatic stories of patients with baffling symptoms, Sanders portrays the absolute necessity and surprising difficulties of getting the patient’s story, the challenges of the physical exam, the pitfalls of doctor-to-doctor communication, the vagaries of tests, and the near calamity of diagnostic errors. In Every Patient Tells a Story, Dr. Sanders chronicles the real-life drama of doctors solving these difficult medical mysteries that not only illustrate the art and science of diagnosis, but often save the patients’ lives.
Medical-Surgical Nursing: Clinical Management for Positive Outcomes
Joyce M. Black - 2001
This text provides a reliable foundation in anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, medical management, and nursing care for the full spectrum of adult health conditions. The roles of various healthcare professionals in managing each disorder and are clearly outlined, and evidence-based practice and clinical guidelines are integrated throughout the text.
Flat Out Flat Broke: The Original Stig
Perry McCarthy - 2015
Flat Out Flat broke is his hilarious and internationally acclaimed autobiography which takes you on Perry’s roller-coaster adventure as he battled on and off the race tracks of the world to fulfil his dream of Grand Prix stardom. One of the best selling motor racing books of all time, Perry’s story will have you on the edge of your seat either on the verge of tears or howling with laughter at both his bizarre misfortune and his triumphs against the odds. Don't miss it, it's the life story of a battler, a maestro in so many disciplines. But overall Perry McCarthy knows how to recover from failure and create success. From working on oil rigs to fame as The Stig, Flat Out Flat Broke is an utterly fascinating read and you will see why even other racing drivers affectionately call him ‘Mad Dog’!Perry McCarthy’s hilarious autobiography Flat Out, Flat Broke, has already become a motor racing best seller and has received rave reviews:
SAMPLE OF MAGAZINE/NEWSPAPER REVIEWS:
‘ ... this book is hilarious’Autosport‘Perry McCarthy does for Formula One what Bill Bryson did for travel writing. But beneath the black humour and wisecracks – funny enough to make you laugh out loud in public – lies an inspiring and at times poignant tale of that rarest kind of racer: one who never gave up and was, literally, prepared to die trying.’The Independent on Sunday‘Perry McCarthy has always been excellent at describing his career in a series of memorable anecdotes, and here they are, strung together in book form. The reader is frequently left racked with sympathy at the author’s outrageous misfortune, or in convulsive sobs of laughter. This is an utterly fantastic read.’MotorSport magazine‘Sometimes books, like cigarette packets, should come with a surgeons health warning. Flat Out Flat Broke is a case in point, not just because it contains photographs of the author in the long forgotten days of his early childhood, but because it will make your stomach ache from laughing.’F1 Magazine'…. A fantastic funny story'(Book of the week) The London Evening Standard‘His engaging story of a less-than-smooth life in motor racing exudes his own cockney energy and enthusiasm and is a charming feel good tale that shows you can get what you want if you want it badly enough’Scottish Sunday Express‘The James Hunt impressions, the Ayrton Senna pizza delivery, the Rat Pack stories - the laughs come thick and fast in Perry McCarthy’s fantastic new book, Flat Out Flat Broke …’Daily Express‘The third edition of Perry McCarthy’s autobiography is a brilliant read’Auto Express
SAMPLE OF AMAZON CUSTOMER REVIEWS:
'Fantastic' Mr. J. W. Wood (Grimsby, UK) 'Brilliant!' By True Reader' "Brock" (London, England)'Fantastic very funny!' By S.
Nothing Good Happens at ... the Baby Hospital: The Strange, Silly World of Pediatric Brain Surgery
Daniel Fulkerson - 2016
But after falling backwards into the specialty, Dr. Fulkerson found neurosurgery to be a field filled with joy, sadness, a little humor, and courageous and inspiring patients.In an honest and compelling retelling of his long and winding road to train and then practice as a pediatric neurosurgeon, Dr. Fulkerson guides others through his journey from medical school to service on a small military base, through residency training, and finally, to a practice in a highly specialized children's hospital. The journey reveals the dramatic swings of emotions experienced by both patients and doctors in an increasingly hostile medical environment. Dr. Fulkerson also shares stories of dedicated professors who train medical students and resident surgeons to care for the tiniest neurosurgical patients.Nothing Good Happens at ... The Baby Hospital offers a compelling glimpse into the joys, tragedies, and hopeful moments that surround the highly specialized and sometimes silly world of pediatric neurosurgery.
Crimson Security
Evie Nichole - 2017
Things are bound to get hot when the men of Crimson Security are involved. Book 1 My name is Darby Connors and I’m in deep. Maybe too deep for me to make it out alive. It isn’t the first time I’ve been in trouble while doing my job, but this time feels different. Something is coming for me. Someone is coming for me. Hendrix Crimson is assigned to guard my body, and guard it, he does. Caught up in the mess I’ve made, he tries to help me solve the case I’m working on so he only has to worry about one killer coming after me. Book 2 My name is Lacey Holt and I do not need help from Jagger Crimson. Someone is messing with my family, and my ranch, trying to drag up painful family memories. They’ve convinced my dad that my brother’s murderer is back and ready to pick off the rest of our family. I know better. I know that I can take care of it without Jagger, too. He’s a constant distraction and all he’ll do is get in my way. Convincing my dad of that is another story. When it becomes clear that the threat is directed at me, he is ready to ship me off to safety. I’m an adult, though. I’m tough. There’s nothing that this hidden bully can do to run me off my family land. Except for kidnap me and lock me away. So, maybe I do need Jagger after all. Not that I’d ever want to admit that to him. Book 3 Left an orphan after a rough childhood, I was taken in by the president of a rough Motorcycle Club. Given plenty of room to grow, I was treated like a princess. Until I wasn’t. When things in the club change and a new president takes his throne, I’m in more danger than ever. Sold and then saved by Jackson, I owe him my life. It’s not anything he’s interested in, though. Jackson comes with baggage, but I get it. I have my own. Who can help that when we unpack it, things get a little messy? Book 4 I’m not who I used to be. Detective Rain Willows died while being held captive by a very bad man. Now, I don’t know who I am. I’m not a cop. I’m barely a human some days. I’m scared. I lost everything. I gained some scars. The bad man is still after me. Thad Brooks has an ax to grind with me, but he feels like the only thing standing between me and death. I don’t want to admit that I’m afraid, or that I need help, but when things get bad enough, I’m not too stubborn to wave the white flag. Book 5 My only desire in life is to get my daughter back. At any cost, including my life. My name is Clara Crimson and I’m not a good person. I live with a monster and I have killed. I don’t deserve to be happy, but she does. Cash Crimson, my ex-husband, has every reason to hate me and he does. He probably would like to watch me die, but he thinks he needs me to find our daughter. What we find isn’t what we expected, though. I’m not sure either of us will survive it. I’m not sure I want to. We have to keep our daughter safe. We have to get close and remember we’re on the same team. It's time to bring down the man who destroyed us.
Interchange 2 Teacher's Resource Book
Jack C. Richards - 1990
The Interchange Third Edition Teacher's Resource Book provides teachers with fun and engaging classroom activities that supplement the material in the Student's Book. The book contains photocopiable activities for extra practice in listening, grammar, writing, and vocabulary, with answers and audio scripts provided. An Audio CD is included for use with the listening section.
I Wasn't Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse
Lee Gutkind - 2013
Here, nurses remember their first “sticks,” first births, and first deaths, and reflect on what gets them though long, demanding shifts, and keeps them in the profession. The stories reveal many voices from nurses at different stages of their careers: One nurse-in-training longs to be trusted with more “important” procedures, while another questions her ability to care for nursing home residents. An efficient young emergency room nurse finds his life and career irrevocably changed by a car accident. A nurse practitioner wonders whether she has violated professional boundaries in her care for a homeless man with AIDS, and a home care case manager is the sole attendee at a funeral for one of her patients. What connects these stories is the passion and strength of the writers, who struggle against burnout and bureaucracy to serve their patients with skill, empathy, and strength.
Cheating Death: The Doctors and Medical Miracles that Are Saving Lives Against All Odds
Sanjay Gupta - 2009
. . a skier submerged for an hour in a frozen Norwegian lake . . . a comatose brain surgery patient whom doctors have declared a "vegetable."Twenty years ago all of them would have been given up for dead, with no realistic hope for survival. But today, thanks to incredible new medical advances, each of these individuals is alive and well . . .Cheating Death.In this riveting book, Dr. Sanjay Gupta-neurosurgeon, chief medical correspondent for CNN, and bestselling author-chronicles the almost unbelievable science that has made these seemingly miraculous recoveries possible. A bold new breed of doctors has achieved amazing rescues by refusing to accept that any life is irretrievably lost. Extended cardiac arrest, "brain death," not breathing for over an hour-all these conditions used to be considered inevitably fatal, but they no longer are. Today, revolutionary advances are blurring the traditional line between life and death in fascinating ways.Drawing on real-life stories and using his unprecedented access to the latest medical research, Dr. Gupta dramatically presents exciting accounts of how pioneering physicians and researchers are altering our understanding of how the human body functions when it comes to survival-and why more and more patients who once would have died are now alive. From experiments with therapeutic hypothermia to save comatose stroke or heart attack victims to lifesaving operations in utero to the study of animal hibernation to help wounded soldiers on far-off battlefields, these remarkable case histories transform and enrich all our assumptions about the true nature of death and life.
How Doctors Think
Jerome Groopman - 2007
In that short time, many doctors decide on the likely diagnosis and best treatment. Often, decisions made this way are correct, but at crucial moments they can also be wrong -- with catastrophic consequences. In this myth-shattering book, Jerome Groopman pinpoints the forces and thought processes behind the decisions doctors make. Groopman explores why doctors err and shows when and how they can -- with our help -- avoid snap judgments, embrace uncertainty, communicate effectively, and deploy other skills that can profoundly impact our health. This book is the first to describe in detail the warning signs of erroneous medical thinking and reveal how new technologies may actually hinder accurate diagnoses. How Doctors Think offers direct, intelligent questions patients can ask their doctors to help them get back on track.Groopman draws on a wealth of research, extensive interviews with some of the country’s best doctors, and his own experiences as a doctor and as a patient. He has learned many of the lessons in this book the hard way, from his own mistakes and from errors his doctors made in treating his own debilitating medical problems.How Doctors Think reveals a profound new view of twenty-first-century medical practice, giving doctors and patients the vital information they need to make better judgments together.
A Surgeon's War: My Year in Vietnam
Henry Ward Trueblood - 2015
A young surgeon is drafted into the U.S. Navy and sent to Vietnam, where he finds himself closer than he ever imagined to the carnage of war. He performs operations while under fire and sees wounds that can barely be contemplated. Marines are dying on the operating table in front of him. The small-town moral certainties he grew up believing in may themselves succumb to the ravages he is witnessing. More than anything, he wants to make it home to marry the woman he loves.