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The Doctor Will See You Now
Grey's Anatomy and Scrubs for bookish types—a charming and funny memoir of a young doctor's life A uniquely funny, insightful, and touching take on medicine and those who practice and receive it, this is the story of Max, a young doctor who works marathon shifts in the dementia and Accident & Emergency (A&E) wards treating a wide and colorful range of patients that his previous years of experience somehow failed to prepare him for. Dementia, though serious, is not without its funny moments, and Max soon realizes that one of the benefits of working in the memory clinic is that patients frequently forget to turn up! But the patients who do show are charming and lovable—from Mr. Brownlee, a removal man with Mad Cow Disease who removes furniture from the ward in the belief that he's still at work, to Valerie, a senior whose dementia has convinced her that Max is her son. As we follow Max on his hospital rounds, we fight with him to save the A&E ward from shutting down, to expose and improve on the deficient care in private nursing homes, to defend his friend's honor after she's assaulted by an older man, and to ordain the marriage of a gay couple in their 80s.
322 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
100 people are currently reading
1110 people want to read
About the author
Max Pemberton
32 books14 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Max^Pemberton
Max Pemberton is a British medical doctor, journalist and author. He works full-time as a psychiatrist in the National Health Service (NHS). He is a weekly columnist for the Daily Mail, writing comment on news events concerning culture, social and ethical issues, the politics of health care and the NHS Before his move to the Daily Mail, he was a columnist for the Daily Telegraph. He also writes a monthly column for Reader’s Digest and is a regular contributor to The Spectator. He is the editor of Spectator Health, a quarterly supplement from The Spectator.
Max^Pemberton
Max Pemberton is a British medical doctor, journalist and author. He works full-time as a psychiatrist in the National Health Service (NHS). He is a weekly columnist for the Daily Mail, writing comment on news events concerning culture, social and ethical issues, the politics of health care and the NHS Before his move to the Daily Mail, he was a columnist for the Daily Telegraph. He also writes a monthly column for Reader’s Digest and is a regular contributor to The Spectator. He is the editor of Spectator Health, a quarterly supplement from The Spectator.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
October 7, 2012
I picked up this book reading the blurb.
After a year on the streets treating outreach patients, Max Pemberton is back in the relative comfort of hospital. This time running between elderly care and dementia clinic to A&E and outpatients. No longer inexperienced(Max and his doctor friends can now tell when someone is actually dead, they are on the front line of patient care for better or worse.
One of the non-fiction books that actually touched my heart, made me feel glad that there are doctors out there that care, not that one really doubts that, but sometimes it gets easy to wonder.
Max Pemberton is a junior doctor with the NHS. He has just started work at the hospital after a year treating outreach patients. He says that ‘Within twenty four hours I had gone from a hanging around street corners, wearing jeans and a t-shirt an bribing patients so I could check their blood pressure, to being a proper, tie wearing, stethoscope waving medic.’
He works with the A&E as well as at the dementia clinic and elderly care. He talks about how almost all doctors of other specialties can claim to have gotten their patients to recover, but someone working with the elderly and dementia, could probably never get to say that. The difficulties that both patients, care homes and doctors face in elderly care makes a heart-rending read. Especially impressive is the ways that nurses and carers find to work around difficult patients who have lost their memories, and try to live their lives with scraps of what they remember from their previous lives. Elderly patients who are themselves carers of older partners, and more worried about their partners than themselves, when they get admitted into a hospital for something like a heart attack. Some instances bring a smile to our faces, while some are heart-breaking.
Along with his professional life, he also touches upon the personal lives of himself and his friends. The choices they make, and how life is never what it seems to be. How the most unlikely people turn up surprises of the most pleasant sort. It gives a real insight into the lives of medical professionals who battle with so many different things while providing us with healthcare of all sorts. Sometimes A&E staff is even forced to call upon firefighters to help, not once but twice. It gives a real insight into the NHS, the challenges and the opportunities that they face. Of how some doctors and medical professionals go that extra mile when it comes to patient care.
Written with self deprecating humour, his deep dedication to his job, and his patients comes through in every page of this book. You reach the end of the book, hoping that it would go on and on. I haven’t read his previous books, but can’t wait to read them now. I wouldn’t miss them for the world. One of the best books I have read recently.
After a year on the streets treating outreach patients, Max Pemberton is back in the relative comfort of hospital. This time running between elderly care and dementia clinic to A&E and outpatients. No longer inexperienced(Max and his doctor friends can now tell when someone is actually dead, they are on the front line of patient care for better or worse.
One of the non-fiction books that actually touched my heart, made me feel glad that there are doctors out there that care, not that one really doubts that, but sometimes it gets easy to wonder.
Max Pemberton is a junior doctor with the NHS. He has just started work at the hospital after a year treating outreach patients. He says that ‘Within twenty four hours I had gone from a hanging around street corners, wearing jeans and a t-shirt an bribing patients so I could check their blood pressure, to being a proper, tie wearing, stethoscope waving medic.’
He works with the A&E as well as at the dementia clinic and elderly care. He talks about how almost all doctors of other specialties can claim to have gotten their patients to recover, but someone working with the elderly and dementia, could probably never get to say that. The difficulties that both patients, care homes and doctors face in elderly care makes a heart-rending read. Especially impressive is the ways that nurses and carers find to work around difficult patients who have lost their memories, and try to live their lives with scraps of what they remember from their previous lives. Elderly patients who are themselves carers of older partners, and more worried about their partners than themselves, when they get admitted into a hospital for something like a heart attack. Some instances bring a smile to our faces, while some are heart-breaking.
Along with his professional life, he also touches upon the personal lives of himself and his friends. The choices they make, and how life is never what it seems to be. How the most unlikely people turn up surprises of the most pleasant sort. It gives a real insight into the lives of medical professionals who battle with so many different things while providing us with healthcare of all sorts. Sometimes A&E staff is even forced to call upon firefighters to help, not once but twice. It gives a real insight into the NHS, the challenges and the opportunities that they face. Of how some doctors and medical professionals go that extra mile when it comes to patient care.
Written with self deprecating humour, his deep dedication to his job, and his patients comes through in every page of this book. You reach the end of the book, hoping that it would go on and on. I haven’t read his previous books, but can’t wait to read them now. I wouldn’t miss them for the world. One of the best books I have read recently.
January 13, 2012
Max is back for another adventure as a not-so-junior doctor. This year, he’s back at the same hospital he spent his first year at. Only this time, he’s got a rotation closer to his final specialty (geriatrics, with some psychogeriatrics and some general medicine). There is still plenty of room for odd presentations to the ED (one for example, involves a circular device being used a little too long, nudge nudge wink wink) and funny things that patients say and do. Max’s experiences are also tinged with sadness at times- at the end of life care for older people as well as the state of the NHS (National Health Service, that’s the public health service in the UK. You can easily apply the issues anywhere though).
The great thing about Max’s writing is that he has a fantastic ability to explain things, whether it be disease, treatment or bureaucracy, in easily understood terms. Even though I’m not in the UK, I was able to understand the cost-saving measures put in place for the building of hospitals and services offered. Max also wrote the clearest explanation of what a prion is and its effects on the human brain – not an easy task. This ability to put into plain words limitations of today’s healthcare (such as chemical sedation for demented patients, locking of ward pantries to restrict food after hours, shutting emergency departments) strengthens his argument – what about the patient? Isn’t the aim of healthcare profession to do what’s best for them?
Please don’t let the above paragraph detract you into thinking the book has a preaching tone. It doesn’t. There are laughs, sadness and frustration aplenty. We also see the return of Flora, Ruby and Lewis, who each have stronger storylines in this book. There is also the return of the Three Marys (secretaries) and Trudy, supplier of cakes and knowledge, along with some new characters. Max and his friends also get time off to go on holiday and attend a wedding, even if everything doesn’t turn out as planned…
I’ll be interested to see what Max does next. He is an excellent writer who always makes reading about medicine a fascinating subject. If only he could rewrite some of my textbooks!
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
The great thing about Max’s writing is that he has a fantastic ability to explain things, whether it be disease, treatment or bureaucracy, in easily understood terms. Even though I’m not in the UK, I was able to understand the cost-saving measures put in place for the building of hospitals and services offered. Max also wrote the clearest explanation of what a prion is and its effects on the human brain – not an easy task. This ability to put into plain words limitations of today’s healthcare (such as chemical sedation for demented patients, locking of ward pantries to restrict food after hours, shutting emergency departments) strengthens his argument – what about the patient? Isn’t the aim of healthcare profession to do what’s best for them?
Please don’t let the above paragraph detract you into thinking the book has a preaching tone. It doesn’t. There are laughs, sadness and frustration aplenty. We also see the return of Flora, Ruby and Lewis, who each have stronger storylines in this book. There is also the return of the Three Marys (secretaries) and Trudy, supplier of cakes and knowledge, along with some new characters. Max and his friends also get time off to go on holiday and attend a wedding, even if everything doesn’t turn out as planned…
I’ll be interested to see what Max does next. He is an excellent writer who always makes reading about medicine a fascinating subject. If only he could rewrite some of my textbooks!
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
May 27, 2018
An entertaining and quick read. I found the sections on patients with Alzheimers difficult though.
March 29, 2017
I'm being a little mean here. This is an amusing and well-meaning collection of anecdotes from a fellow junior doc. Certainly a lot of the material is familiar and Dr Pemberton captures some of the frustrations experienced in hospital life.
Critically speaking though, there was a lot that irked me. The whole text needed a good proof-read for a start. Without meaning to, his character comes off a bit opinionated and smug. He tries to overcompensate for this by professing his humility at every opportunity.
I read Trust Me, I'm a Junior Doctor before starting my first job and it gave a light and entertaining insight into the job. There was one anecdote (that I only half-remember) that had especially troubled me when I read the book; his character witnesses in theatre what amounts to a mild sexual assault of a patient under anaesthesia - and doesn't report this behaviour in any way. Having this niggling in the back of my mind could have coloured my perceptions of this sequel a little.
I didn't quite like it enough to give it a 3-star rating.
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Dr Pemberton is a compassionate, kind and reflective doctor. I feel his writing style is more suited to blogs, opinion pieces and perhaps even short stories, rather than the 'novel/memoir' format.
Critically speaking though, there was a lot that irked me. The whole text needed a good proof-read for a start. Without meaning to, his character comes off a bit opinionated and smug. He tries to overcompensate for this by professing his humility at every opportunity.
I read Trust Me, I'm a Junior Doctor before starting my first job and it gave a light and entertaining insight into the job. There was one anecdote (that I only half-remember) that had especially troubled me when I read the book; his character witnesses in theatre what amounts to a mild sexual assault of a patient under anaesthesia - and doesn't report this behaviour in any way. Having this niggling in the back of my mind could have coloured my perceptions of this sequel a little.
I didn't quite like it enough to give it a 3-star rating.
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Dr Pemberton is a compassionate, kind and reflective doctor. I feel his writing style is more suited to blogs, opinion pieces and perhaps even short stories, rather than the 'novel/memoir' format.
January 5, 2012
Quick read that's alternately amusing and touching. Also a nice reminder that no matter its faults, I'm eternally grateful that we still have the NHS!
August 16, 2020
Another really enjoyable instalment of Max Pembertons junior Doctor adventures! I hope he releases more!
February 21, 2022
I am really surprised that the author and the copy-editor don't know the difference between pus and puss.
September 23, 2012
Back in March I read and loved a book "Trust me, I'm a junior doctor" by a British medical doctor called Max Pemberton. I liked it so much I set out to find the other books written by the same author/doctor and yesterday I managed tofinish another one, his third or fourth actually, titled "The Doctor Will See you Now".
In this book I can see the doctor has gained confidence and is training in psychiatry. It is still an enjoyable and funny read however it was very touching indeed. Less humor and more reality for sure. You get to read about old people wasting away with dementia or living in nursing homes and how, in one's old age, having someone by enough caring enough to take care of you is a blessing.
Some of the situations in the book raise questions like, would you be willing to bequeath your priceless Picasso paintings in exchange of companionship, would that be right? What about the use of Electrical Shock Treatment for severely depressed patients? How is that administered and how humane is that, if at all beneficial? All of that with doses of comedy lurking in between the pages.
I would personally recommend this book, I liked it very much indeed and I'm still on the lookout for other publications by Dr. Max to go on my bookshelf along with the two books I've read already.
February 17, 2012
This is Max's third autobiographical book about life as a junior doctor in the NHS. I really enjoyed the first two, so my Mum send it to me as a present after I handed in my dissertation. You do not need to read the first books to enjoy this one, though I can recommend them anyway. This is an interesting read, part laugh out loud funny, part serious. It gives you insight into the NHS, and particularly care of elderly people without being in the least bit preachy or overbearing. Max has a real gift for comedy writing, which shines through, and his serious points give you pause to think.
I obviously really enjoy this as I am training to be a doctor, but I think it can be enjoyed by anyone, not just those who are involved in medicine or the NHS.
I obviously really enjoy this as I am training to be a doctor, but I think it can be enjoyed by anyone, not just those who are involved in medicine or the NHS.
March 29, 2015
Cleverly written, humorous, poignant, touching and also enlightening in parts about the continual decline of the NHS and it's impact on the care of both the elderly and patients with mental health issues in particular.Max's observations are spot on and although he is succinct about how hopeless and angry he feels at time, because he genuinely cares, he is never pious or pompous with his opinions. He merely states it as it is and offers common sense solutions to ridiculous situations, but then, where does commonsense prevail when profit margins need to be maintained?
After all the care of human beings is a business and not founded on the principles of compassion...oh sorry I forgot myself there. ....it originally was and should continue to be.
After all the care of human beings is a business and not founded on the principles of compassion...oh sorry I forgot myself there. ....it originally was and should continue to be.
March 31, 2018
Great to meet with more folk in the UK health service who really care. I feel Max Pemberton has a good understanding of how the concept of partnering with private enterprise undermines all that is good in social services! Given that NZ has been attempting to follow in that directions, and private health insurers are even now pushing for this new Labour government to 'partner' with them for the 'benefit' of citizens this was a useful read although somewhat depressing. Why we still get taken in by corporates with all the privileges and none of the responsibilities of true human beings I really don't know.
April 4, 2023
A good read, as usual, and it's good to see his passion for and commitment to the NHS is as strong as ever. Considering all the dozens and dozens of friends and colleagues he cites as helping with his book, though, it's surprising that none of them has pointed out the grammatical errors he is prone to. Most gratingly, he's one of those people who fails to see the difference between "I" and "me". It is gratifying, however, that his publisher has at last recognised that "practise", when used as a verb, is spelt with an "s" rather than a second "c".
December 27, 2011
Witty, down-to-earth, truthful; an interesting description of the life and work-load of a young doctor. Also afforded an interesting view into the various problems with hospitals these days, mainly in the form of budget cuts and what a hospital is forced to do just to stay open, as well as the implications on patients that these actions have. Well worth the read.
Read
July 29, 2014I have previously read max pemberton's books and have found them to be brilliant, i came across this book and was eagerly anticipating it to be similar to the last two. I was slightly disappointed, it seemed rushed, almost the same sort of stories from before. I did finish it, although it wont be stored to read again im afraid.
September 5, 2018
An Easy Read
While the author has a very readable style, I didn’t like this as much as his first book. It comes across more as a tale about him and his flat mates, than hospital life.
I’d definitely recommend his first book to people - not so sure I would do the same with this one
While the author has a very readable style, I didn’t like this as much as his first book. It comes across more as a tale about him and his flat mates, than hospital life.
I’d definitely recommend his first book to people - not so sure I would do the same with this one
Read
September 7, 2018This book had me mostly laughing out loud, but occasionally close to tears. There are some profound insights into both the good and bad parts of our NHS and the inevitable lack of expectation that anything will change anytime soon.
August 15, 2022
I have read all three of his books, one after another, so I cannot promise there will not be spoilers from his previous novels. As much as "spoilers" can really be a thing with non fiction books anyway.
These books are easy to read, you can pick them up, put them down for a week and still be fine. You could also sit down for a couple of hours and read it in one go. Sometimes books in the medical genre can be more depressing with a tiny bit of hope. I'd say this was the opposite. Though Max doesn't shy away with the problems the Nhs is facing from every angle. It doesn't pull punches on where things are going wrong and what has to be done for change. Though I don't think there will be change on certain things as I think the way things are currently suit a lot of people. The private companies who provide the food, parking, security etc. So much useless red tape everywhere. It is easy to understand and even if you don't have any kind of medical knowledge, Max makes it understandable what is going on for most people.
Max is very obtuse. Its something I've noticed through out all his books. What the reader can pick up from the very first mention, Max only realises months later what the situation is. Sometimes he doesn't even realise at all and has be told in plainer words. And because of this, his friends can come across badly because we only get a glimpse into their story and they discuss very little with Max on the page. The first time I noticed this was with Ruby, when she was defending sleeping with a married man and Max just never really brought the topic up with Ruby again until it was all over even though he knew Ruby was believing lies because he knew that the husbands wife was pregnant and she didn't. In this one with Flora and her casualness of having a baby. Like they find out she's pregnant, but not one person discusses what she is going to do and what is her plan, other than renting out spare room. She's a doctor which requires a lot of hours. She needed a plan, whether that it a nanny or a nursery etc. I would've asked her what her plan is by month 4? 5 at a push. Her friends kindly allowed them to start letting out the spare room to reduce only rent and they still pay the same rent as before. And what do they get for being helpful? A babysitting chart that was announced to them as Flora was walking out the door. I'm not a doctor and even I know, with their hours and shift patterns, it would never run smoothly to the effect that someone would always be home with the kid. And it is a bit entitled and a lot to ask for, especially as they barely got time to have social lives or do things like chores when not at work.
Also, did Flora really leave her newborn baby with two people who hadn't agreed to raise a child in this very communal way and shouted it as she rushed out the door. I mean, just because they don't mind a baby living there, doesn't mean that they want to help raise a baby. Especially with the exhausting schedule that all of them have. I would be worried about accidents due to falling asleep. If I found a babysitting chart on my fridge for a kid that isn't mine? I wouldn't mind helping now and again, it's just the expectation that bristles. And then said she'd be back for the time the baby was hungry? So they had a crying baby and no way to feed it? And babies feed. A lot. There is no guarantee that the kid wasn't crying because it was already hungry? And depending on what she drank at the pub, she'd have to dump her milk anyway? Maybe they had convos that just weren't presented on the page and thought the ending would come off "Lol, what are we like!" instead of almost neglectful. Though throughout all three of these books, their friendship group seems to avoid some big needed talks or didn't want them discussed too much in the book. So maybe it was all discussed, but I'm guessing not considering Max even says that Flora was in denial though Max isn't always the best narrator of certain situations. Having a kid is a huge thing, having a kid while still trying to become fully fledged doctor with a speciality? Even bigger and harder, especially if money is an issue.
Of course, you don't know what is true, what is exaggerated, what is simply made up, what has been merged. So I'm thinking of Flora as "Flora the character" as I write this review and not the woman who Flora is based upon. I don't know her story. I'm writing about Flora the character and what we got shown about Flora the character. Same with Ruby. Same with Max really, as he can come across smug and the things he lets slides is...awful. He knows he shouldn't, yet it happens again throughout each one of his books. He always talks about things knowing it's wrong. And when he actually for once says something public, he panics. Though I know it can be hard to do the right thing when you're the only one who is willing to be public. I also hope that Ruby's higher up who attacked her, never did something like that again. And perhaps was held against him. It was hard to read when it seemed he might have a promotion. I understand why not to report, as Ruby truly would've been dragged through the mud but it's still hard to read. And I hope it didn't effect her career later.
These books are easy to read, you can pick them up, put them down for a week and still be fine. You could also sit down for a couple of hours and read it in one go. Sometimes books in the medical genre can be more depressing with a tiny bit of hope. I'd say this was the opposite. Though Max doesn't shy away with the problems the Nhs is facing from every angle. It doesn't pull punches on where things are going wrong and what has to be done for change. Though I don't think there will be change on certain things as I think the way things are currently suit a lot of people. The private companies who provide the food, parking, security etc. So much useless red tape everywhere. It is easy to understand and even if you don't have any kind of medical knowledge, Max makes it understandable what is going on for most people.
Max is very obtuse. Its something I've noticed through out all his books. What the reader can pick up from the very first mention, Max only realises months later what the situation is. Sometimes he doesn't even realise at all and has be told in plainer words. And because of this, his friends can come across badly because we only get a glimpse into their story and they discuss very little with Max on the page. The first time I noticed this was with Ruby, when she was defending sleeping with a married man and Max just never really brought the topic up with Ruby again until it was all over even though he knew Ruby was believing lies because he knew that the husbands wife was pregnant and she didn't. In this one with Flora and her casualness of having a baby. Like they find out she's pregnant, but not one person discusses what she is going to do and what is her plan, other than renting out spare room. She's a doctor which requires a lot of hours. She needed a plan, whether that it a nanny or a nursery etc. I would've asked her what her plan is by month 4? 5 at a push. Her friends kindly allowed them to start letting out the spare room to reduce only rent and they still pay the same rent as before. And what do they get for being helpful? A babysitting chart that was announced to them as Flora was walking out the door. I'm not a doctor and even I know, with their hours and shift patterns, it would never run smoothly to the effect that someone would always be home with the kid. And it is a bit entitled and a lot to ask for, especially as they barely got time to have social lives or do things like chores when not at work.
Also, did Flora really leave her newborn baby with two people who hadn't agreed to raise a child in this very communal way and shouted it as she rushed out the door. I mean, just because they don't mind a baby living there, doesn't mean that they want to help raise a baby. Especially with the exhausting schedule that all of them have. I would be worried about accidents due to falling asleep. If I found a babysitting chart on my fridge for a kid that isn't mine? I wouldn't mind helping now and again, it's just the expectation that bristles. And then said she'd be back for the time the baby was hungry? So they had a crying baby and no way to feed it? And babies feed. A lot. There is no guarantee that the kid wasn't crying because it was already hungry? And depending on what she drank at the pub, she'd have to dump her milk anyway? Maybe they had convos that just weren't presented on the page and thought the ending would come off "Lol, what are we like!" instead of almost neglectful. Though throughout all three of these books, their friendship group seems to avoid some big needed talks or didn't want them discussed too much in the book. So maybe it was all discussed, but I'm guessing not considering Max even says that Flora was in denial though Max isn't always the best narrator of certain situations. Having a kid is a huge thing, having a kid while still trying to become fully fledged doctor with a speciality? Even bigger and harder, especially if money is an issue.
Of course, you don't know what is true, what is exaggerated, what is simply made up, what has been merged. So I'm thinking of Flora as "Flora the character" as I write this review and not the woman who Flora is based upon. I don't know her story. I'm writing about Flora the character and what we got shown about Flora the character. Same with Ruby. Same with Max really, as he can come across smug and the things he lets slides is...awful. He knows he shouldn't, yet it happens again throughout each one of his books. He always talks about things knowing it's wrong. And when he actually for once says something public, he panics. Though I know it can be hard to do the right thing when you're the only one who is willing to be public. I also hope that Ruby's higher up who attacked her, never did something like that again. And perhaps was held against him. It was hard to read when it seemed he might have a promotion. I understand why not to report, as Ruby truly would've been dragged through the mud but it's still hard to read. And I hope it didn't effect her career later.
November 29, 2022
After a year out on the streets, Dr. Max Pemberton is now back in the hospital working in the geriatrics department.
Spoilers ahead.
Okay, it's official. I need a fourth book in this series and not just because I desperately don't want to watch any more prerecorded lectures. Dr. Pemberton has so much faith in healthcare and in medicine as a profession. While reading, I couldn't help but feel buoyed by his passion to keep wading my way through the endless exams and content to be memorised.
I couldn't have read this book at a more perfect time. I'm on my MoE block right now and that's exactly the demographic of patients that Max Pemberton worked with here!
I had assumed Dr. Pemberton had completed his training before the NHS went through a massive structural change. To my surprise, he was caught right in the midst of all that change so it was eye-opening to understand what those changes meant. I thought the change meant foundation doctors would work a maximum of forty hours a week and receive lots of guidance and support. Turns out that's not the case at all (on both parts). This was only confirmed when I spoke to an F1 colleague of mine who was miserable and overworked (so yay me, something to look forward to after graduation). I suppose the main reason for the NHS just not working right is that we don't actually have doctors leading the admin and being on the board. Even the health secretary in the UK isn't a doctor! How does that make any sense at all??? I don't understand it!
It was alarming to read of the food shortages and how care homes weren't treating elderly patients right. The ward round usually has to stop for a few minutes when patients are having their meals (protected meal time). My stomach always makes it a point to growl when the nurses are serving food to everyone on the ward. I never even thought to question that that food was so limited. I guess I assumed it was just there. The pantry very clearly specifies that no one BUT patients is allowed to eat that food. Maybe things have changed since 2011?
Still, Dr. Pemberton said it best:
That's why I feel a TINY bit guilty when I go on and on about moving out of the UK as quickly as possible. I love the idea of the NHS and it's amazing that such a system exists in the first place! So many people here take it for granted and I sometimes find myself doing so too. At the end of the day, the NHS IS free healthcare for people and that's not something a lot of countries can boast about.
This book definitely touched a lot more on homosexuality. I LOVED the story about Anthony and Geoff's wedding and I was devastated when Geoff died near the end despite Anthony being the one with cancer. Lewis' story (where his family disowned him when he came out) was also heartbreaking and it was all the more heartbreaking that he never shared it with his friends; his partner Mark ended up revealing what had gone down.
The fourteen-year-old gay boy who attempted to commit suicide due to bullying at school was horrendous to read about too. I wished Dr. Pemberton had spoken to the boy about being gay and how things do get better. I think it would have made a difference but I suppose that would be veering dangerously close into personal territory and as doctors, we have to distance ourselves ever the right amount from patients. Dr. Pemberton had cried every day upon coming home from school because of his sexuality.
Do all medics think like this? About crying being pointless and it being more worthwhile to buckle down and study? Because I know I ALWAYS go down that route. Heartbreak, grief, depression--well, there's always a lecture that I can go over instead of crying, or flashcards to revise instead of banging my head against the wall because of the unfairness of it all. Also, that line about how being gay made him a doctor made me laugh horrifically loudly on the bus.
So, I really enjoyed this book and, as I said, I am eager for more of Dr. Pemberton's work. Hell, I wish I could have a conversation with him and ask HOW he managed to get to where he's at right now. I feel so out of it sometimes and it's so easy to focus on myself and how tired I am and how much I want to go home than the patient in front of me who has an ailment. And I'm not even a doctor yet!
(Also, can we also just take a moment to admire that cover? I wish I swaggered down the hallways of the hospital the way Dr. Pemberton does on that cover. And look at the gorgeous ECG on the left!!!)
Spoilers ahead.
Okay, it's official. I need a fourth book in this series and not just because I desperately don't want to watch any more prerecorded lectures. Dr. Pemberton has so much faith in healthcare and in medicine as a profession. While reading, I couldn't help but feel buoyed by his passion to keep wading my way through the endless exams and content to be memorised.
I couldn't have read this book at a more perfect time. I'm on my MoE block right now and that's exactly the demographic of patients that Max Pemberton worked with here!
I had assumed Dr. Pemberton had completed his training before the NHS went through a massive structural change. To my surprise, he was caught right in the midst of all that change so it was eye-opening to understand what those changes meant. I thought the change meant foundation doctors would work a maximum of forty hours a week and receive lots of guidance and support. Turns out that's not the case at all (on both parts). This was only confirmed when I spoke to an F1 colleague of mine who was miserable and overworked (so yay me, something to look forward to after graduation). I suppose the main reason for the NHS just not working right is that we don't actually have doctors leading the admin and being on the board. Even the health secretary in the UK isn't a doctor! How does that make any sense at all??? I don't understand it!
It was alarming to read of the food shortages and how care homes weren't treating elderly patients right. The ward round usually has to stop for a few minutes when patients are having their meals (protected meal time). My stomach always makes it a point to growl when the nurses are serving food to everyone on the ward. I never even thought to question that that food was so limited. I guess I assumed it was just there. The pantry very clearly specifies that no one BUT patients is allowed to eat that food. Maybe things have changed since 2011?
Still, Dr. Pemberton said it best:
The poverty that I encounter in the UK sometimes surprises me, but it does not impact on the healthcare people receive. It has become something of a national pastime to criticise the NHS, perhaps because it provides a diversion from complaining about the weather. But the reality is that across the world there are millions of people without access to even basic medical care simply because they are poor. The UK is unique in providing world-class healthcare for free at the point of use.
That's why I feel a TINY bit guilty when I go on and on about moving out of the UK as quickly as possible. I love the idea of the NHS and it's amazing that such a system exists in the first place! So many people here take it for granted and I sometimes find myself doing so too. At the end of the day, the NHS IS free healthcare for people and that's not something a lot of countries can boast about.
This book definitely touched a lot more on homosexuality. I LOVED the story about Anthony and Geoff's wedding and I was devastated when Geoff died near the end despite Anthony being the one with cancer. Lewis' story (where his family disowned him when he came out) was also heartbreaking and it was all the more heartbreaking that he never shared it with his friends; his partner Mark ended up revealing what had gone down.
The fourteen-year-old gay boy who attempted to commit suicide due to bullying at school was horrendous to read about too. I wished Dr. Pemberton had spoken to the boy about being gay and how things do get better. I think it would have made a difference but I suppose that would be veering dangerously close into personal territory and as doctors, we have to distance ourselves ever the right amount from patients. Dr. Pemberton had cried every day upon coming home from school because of his sexuality.
And then one day I stopped. I remember thinking that crying hadn't solved the problem and that it clearly wasn't going away, so I should focus on my studies and try and make something of my life. So in part, being gay made me a doctor.
Do all medics think like this? About crying being pointless and it being more worthwhile to buckle down and study? Because I know I ALWAYS go down that route. Heartbreak, grief, depression--well, there's always a lecture that I can go over instead of crying, or flashcards to revise instead of banging my head against the wall because of the unfairness of it all. Also, that line about how being gay made him a doctor made me laugh horrifically loudly on the bus.
So, I really enjoyed this book and, as I said, I am eager for more of Dr. Pemberton's work. Hell, I wish I could have a conversation with him and ask HOW he managed to get to where he's at right now. I feel so out of it sometimes and it's so easy to focus on myself and how tired I am and how much I want to go home than the patient in front of me who has an ailment. And I'm not even a doctor yet!
(Also, can we also just take a moment to admire that cover? I wish I swaggered down the hallways of the hospital the way Dr. Pemberton does on that cover. And look at the gorgeous ECG on the left!!!)
November 14, 2011
The junior doctor returns to hospital, discovers that he really has very little that's new and noteworthy to observe, and turns out a disappointingly flat book.
July 13, 2012
Lots of things to research!
I really do have a love-hate relationship with Max Pemberton; he is a lovely guy, but sometimes the opinions he holds and writes about do rile me slightly!
I really do have a love-hate relationship with Max Pemberton; he is a lovely guy, but sometimes the opinions he holds and writes about do rile me slightly!
July 22, 2012
Funny and sad. My mum has dementia and the tales on the dementia ward are so recognisably true
May 19, 2013
Not the sharpest prose, including quite a few grammatical oversights.
July 30, 2014
Dear author: more books please. Thanks.
August 2, 2014
Fun, easy read that deals with people's conditions respectfully but humourously
August 21, 2014
Horrifyingly accurate about the state of the NHS! Good tales of a modern doctor though, and a few of the medical staff still care about their paitents!
May 8, 2016
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this. Hope another book comes out after this. A reality check for any wannabe doctor about working in the NHS.
July 13, 2017
Not as good as his earlier books.
July 17, 2017
Very easy, non intellectual read.
August 11, 2018
Excellent read
Excellent easy read. Light hearted but able to cover serious issues that have evolved in the NHS. As a nurse in acute medical admissions I was able to relate well.
Excellent easy read. Light hearted but able to cover serious issues that have evolved in the NHS. As a nurse in acute medical admissions I was able to relate well.
August 26, 2018
A quick but fascinating read.
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