There's better
I wasn't going to write a review but I saw this book geting 5 stars and that just seemed inaccurate. My entire intern class bought this book in 2003 and I am not aware of any of us(out of 9) using it still 3 months later. Most of us wound up buying the Pocket Medicine guide from Massachusetts General and liking it much better. That book is great for getting you through the initial admit orders and handling nursing calls in the middle of the night. Now that I am in private practice I still use the Pocket Medicine book and I can't even locate my Internal Medicine On-Call book. Fairly sure I threw it away when I moved.
Internal Medicine on Call
this book is very good for some one who needs fast practical note to handle the newly admitted patient. I read many books in Internal Medicine area ( washington manuel, Current medical diagnosis and treatment, manual of adult ambulatory medicine, mini cecil ) but non of those books gave me what I wanted to know about how to handle the patient that just arrived and I should admitte. this book gives you general but very important informations STEPWISE and you wont be confused as reading big textbooks. the chapter on lab parameter is excellent and very useful. The surgery edition of this series is 85% same as the Internal Medicine one and if you read one it will cover the other too.
THE best on-call handbook!
This is by far the best on-call handbook written. It covers not only common crosscover problems, but has an excellent laboratory and medication reference as well. As a resident supervising procedures, the procedure section has some of the best illustrations and descriptions I've seen. In our Internal Medicine program, we often admit patients "solo" on overnight call, and this book has been a lifesaver (literally!) I forced my ICU intern to purchase this book, as I felt it was vital to getting through those late night nursing calls.
Overall very good, how about a new edition?
I am an intern in IM at the University of Florida, Shands Hospital. I have been using this book since day 1. It has saved me many times and my patients as well. The book is excellent for making a differential diagnoses and I like the fact that it lists common problems encountered while on call. It's great to follow all the recommended steps and really learn as you go along. The best example is hyperkalemia. I have used this 3 times in the last week. It's a great step by step guide to your differentials, what labs to order and what meds to push. I am using the 1st edition from 1991 and I still find it very useful as we still use most of the same drugs. I found it to be very helpful and a life saver. I would like to see a new edition with updated meds. I find myself using this book more than Wash manual or any other book I have. If I get called on abd pain, or fever, or anything, I look it up while in the elevator on the way to the floor and by the time I get there, I have a good idea on how to manage my patient effectively and safely. I would recommend this book for all residents and med students.
great book...
This text is great for its wealth of information for problems - but only for emergency on-call scenarios. (Well, that was stated in the title.) Use it only for selected encounters as it is limited in scope. Each chapter should probably be memorized at some point in your residency. Oh, and it proves a great counter weight for your stethoscope in your white coat.
(5 reviews)
