Cook County ICU: 30 Years of Unforgettable Patients and Odd Cases

by Cory Franklin MD, Cory Franklin, John Pruden (Narrator)

Filled with stories of strange medical cases and unforgettable patients culled from a 30-year career in medicine, Cook County ICU offers listeners a peek into the inner workings of a hospital. Author Cory Franklin, MD, who headed the hospital's intensive care unit from the 1970s through the 1990s, shares his most unique and bizarre experiences, including the deadly Chicago heatwave of 1995, treating the first AIDS patients in the country before the disease was diagnosed, the nurse with rare Munchausen syndrome, the only surviving ricin victim, and the professor with Alzheimer's hiding the effects of the wrong medication. Surprising, darkly humorous, heartwarming, and sometimes tragic, these stories provide a big-picture look at how the practice of medicine has changed over the years, making it a must-listen for patients, doctors, and anyone with an interest in medicine.

Genres: Nonfiction

Audible Audio

Published March 22, 2016

Reviews

[Alyssa Dalrymple · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this. This entire book felt like an opportunity for the author to inflate his own ego. Just seemed very cliché and surface level.

[Ana Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh, it was fine. I did feel like he used this book to get the credit for all the things he didn’t get credit for when he was practicing; he made it a point to mention that he didn’t get credit for stuff multiple times.
Being a born & bred Clevelander, I did appreciate him talking about his time in CLE, not just his time at Cook Co.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author has a knack for medical anecdotes that place you squarely in the real world of medical practice, without burdening you with aggrandizement of the author. Unnervingly, a lot of the anecdotes have a flavor of “here’s a time when I really screwed up, or (adjacent) learned something that I never forgot.”

If my corpse one day provides the means for playing a really good trick on someone’s disliked colleague, well, I guess I’m OK with that.

[Maddie Sukalo · Rating 5 out of 5]

True stories of Cook County ICU and Emergency Room. The doctor did a great job recounting the tantalizing tales of patient care, interactions with celebrities in the hospital, and stories of patient/doctor interactions.

[Cassie Roos · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are really a new interest for me. Stories of patients coming through an ICU. Very interesting! Multiple stories, so if one is not entertaining enough, I know the next one is coming. Always be ready to learn a lot!

[Chloe Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this audiobook!! :)

[Cid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting and well written, a great look at the real side of ICU medicine from a lifelong practitioner. Amusing and not too heavy even in its most serious moments

[Patrick Wikstrom · Rating 1 out of 5]

30 Years of Unforgettable Patients and Odd Cases- Cory Franklin MD- Most of the MD tell all, multiple story books I’ve read were usually forgettable and this audiobook was no different. 1½*

[Sota · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book full of interesting stories. Some stories didn't interest me that much but for the most part this is a fairly good book :D