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ER Confessional
If you like E.R., Scrubs, or Grey s Anatomy, you re going to love the hilarious and often touching ER Confessional. Take a look inside what Dr. Smith affectionately refers to as the beloved E.R. With a dry wit and plenty of southern charm, he prescribes a healthy dose of the funniest and most heart-wrenching true-life emergency room experiences to ever come wheeling out of the hospital! Dr. Smith cleverly chronicles twenty years worth of incredible events while interlocking a second story that details the healing process of a lovesick friend. This gurney ride full of twists and turns will have you laughing out loud as Dr. Smith introduces a host of patients with the zaniest afflictions you could ever imagine. But, be prepared to be side-swiped with the emotion and anguish that accompany the realization that no doctor can save every patient.
208 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2007
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39 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 29, 2014
Bad editing colored the experience; bad attitude ruined it
I was immediately distracted by the awful editing in this book. Not only is the grammar frightful, there's practically a misspelling in every sentence. Obviously, this book was not professionally edited, but it seems as though no one ran a cursory spell check, either. The gimmick of ending each chapter with a continuing tidbit of the author resolving his friend's romantic issues using/proving the life lessons he was learning in the ER was trite. The author's effort to show himself as just an ordinary man backfired. I assume his characterizations of the women he worked with (like the lady doctor with the great ass) were supposed to be funny, but they made him seem like a misogynistic asshole. I am part of a trauma team at a level 1 trauma center. I bought the book because I am fascinated by the people who choose to dedicate their lives to this cause - as I am by the stories of the patients they treat. I was disappointed by this book on so many levels, and I remain mystified as to why it has such good ratings.
I was immediately distracted by the awful editing in this book. Not only is the grammar frightful, there's practically a misspelling in every sentence. Obviously, this book was not professionally edited, but it seems as though no one ran a cursory spell check, either. The gimmick of ending each chapter with a continuing tidbit of the author resolving his friend's romantic issues using/proving the life lessons he was learning in the ER was trite. The author's effort to show himself as just an ordinary man backfired. I assume his characterizations of the women he worked with (like the lady doctor with the great ass) were supposed to be funny, but they made him seem like a misogynistic asshole. I am part of a trauma team at a level 1 trauma center. I bought the book because I am fascinated by the people who choose to dedicate their lives to this cause - as I am by the stories of the patients they treat. I was disappointed by this book on so many levels, and I remain mystified as to why it has such good ratings.
February 28, 2025
Would of love to give 5 stars but.....
The approach this author gave in his story of how things in the er ran was a little dry and most of his memories were sad inthe way things turned out. I can see how he made his mind up in the decisions he made. The very last sentence made you really wonder I'd he was really ok
The approach this author gave in his story of how things in the er ran was a little dry and most of his memories were sad inthe way things turned out. I can see how he made his mind up in the decisions he made. The very last sentence made you really wonder I'd he was really ok
April 25, 2019
If you like "ER", "Scrubs" or just happen to be studying medicine, this is the book for you. Through 24 anecdotes, Dr. Kyle Smith tells of his experiences while working in the beloved ER. The stories vary from the devastating and the heartbreaking to the touching and the just plain hilarious. Each anecdote is lovingly told with dry wit and humor, and then turned and viewed from a different viewpoint when Kyle uses the lessons he learn at the ER in guiding an old friend of his who suffers from a broken heart.
I’ve always enjoyed stories that take place at a hospital, and the fact that these anecdotes just happen to be true only makes them better. We’re once again shown without a shadow of a doubt that truth is indeed stranger than fiction at times, as Kyle Smith shows us how differently people react to the traumas and surprises of the emergency room. Some of his stories made me appalled at how human beings can treat each others, while others made me sit with tears in my eyes at the tragedy that sometimes, no matter what a doctor does, a person is beyond saving. Yet others made me laugh out loud at the shear madness Kyle experienced–for instance when a girl was asked if she used protection when having sex, and replied that she always had a .38 in her bedside table!
The parallels to life outside the hospital and Kyle’s heartbroken friend were a bit heavy-handed at times, but as I got further into the book they made more and more sense. Then I could see a natural progression both in the stories and in the way he tackled having his heart broken–and attempting to move on. I still think the book would have worked just as well without that twist, but it didn’t seem as obviously tacked-upon as I’d feared in the beginning.
ER Confessional is an intriguing book with poignant tales from all aspects of life. Kyle resisted the temptation of making the characters larger than life, and the result is a collection of stories where you can identify with at least one person in every chapter.
Reread in 2019 Wasn't quite as taken with it on my second read through, so I've downgraded the rating from 4 to 3 stars. Still enjoyed it, but wasn't rushing to find out what happened next.
I’ve always enjoyed stories that take place at a hospital, and the fact that these anecdotes just happen to be true only makes them better. We’re once again shown without a shadow of a doubt that truth is indeed stranger than fiction at times, as Kyle Smith shows us how differently people react to the traumas and surprises of the emergency room. Some of his stories made me appalled at how human beings can treat each others, while others made me sit with tears in my eyes at the tragedy that sometimes, no matter what a doctor does, a person is beyond saving. Yet others made me laugh out loud at the shear madness Kyle experienced–for instance when a girl was asked if she used protection when having sex, and replied that she always had a .38 in her bedside table!
The parallels to life outside the hospital and Kyle’s heartbroken friend were a bit heavy-handed at times, but as I got further into the book they made more and more sense. Then I could see a natural progression both in the stories and in the way he tackled having his heart broken–and attempting to move on. I still think the book would have worked just as well without that twist, but it didn’t seem as obviously tacked-upon as I’d feared in the beginning.
ER Confessional is an intriguing book with poignant tales from all aspects of life. Kyle resisted the temptation of making the characters larger than life, and the result is a collection of stories where you can identify with at least one person in every chapter.
Reread in 2019 Wasn't quite as taken with it on my second read through, so I've downgraded the rating from 4 to 3 stars. Still enjoyed it, but wasn't rushing to find out what happened next.
May 17, 2012
This is a terrifically funny and moving series of stories about one doctor's experience with patients in the ER. Life is in fact stranger than fiction. It is amazing what people will do to themselves accidentally and even sometimes on purpose. With dry wit and southern charm Dr. Kyle Smith engages the reading in a journey through a big city hospital sharing the trials, triumphs, the outlandish and saddest of human experiences. You will laugh out loud and cry quietly as you share in Dr Kyle's calling as an ER physician. When you spend 7 years in a high-stress situation it is a calling and not just a job. Kuddos Dr. Kyle ... keep sharing the stories!
May 1, 2016
Needs More
I would like to have read more about patients in the E.R. than all the philosophical crap about the relationship his "friend" was going through. This meant I did not read a whole chapter, as the majority was not about patients. Very disappointing.
I would like to have read more about patients in the E.R. than all the philosophical crap about the relationship his "friend" was going through. This meant I did not read a whole chapter, as the majority was not about patients. Very disappointing.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews