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Duty of Care: One NHS Doctor's Story of the COVID-19 Crisis
ALL ROYALTIES FROM SALES GO TO HEROES, A CHARITY PROTECTING AND SUPPORTING HEALTHCARE WORKERS.
The first book to tell the full story of the COVID-19 pandemic, from an NHS doctor working inside hospitals to save lives and combat the virus on the front line.
"We weren't prepared, we weren't listened to, but together we fought it."
On the 8th of February, Dr. Dominic Pimenta encountered his first suspected case of coronavirus. Within a week, he began wearing a mask on the tube and within a month, he was moved over to the Intensive Care Unit to help fight this virus.
'DUTY OF CARE' is the first book to tell the full story of the COVID-19 pandemic from someone on the frontline, working in one of NHS's hardest hit areas. From the initial whispers coming out of China and the collective hesitation to class this as a pandemic to full lockdown and the continued battle to treat whoever came through the doors. Dr. Pimenta tells the heroic stories of how the entire system shifted to tackle this outbreak and how, ultimately, the staff managed to save lives.
The first book to tell the full story of the COVID-19 pandemic, from an NHS doctor working inside hospitals to save lives and combat the virus on the front line.
"We weren't prepared, we weren't listened to, but together we fought it."
On the 8th of February, Dr. Dominic Pimenta encountered his first suspected case of coronavirus. Within a week, he began wearing a mask on the tube and within a month, he was moved over to the Intensive Care Unit to help fight this virus.
'DUTY OF CARE' is the first book to tell the full story of the COVID-19 pandemic from someone on the frontline, working in one of NHS's hardest hit areas. From the initial whispers coming out of China and the collective hesitation to class this as a pandemic to full lockdown and the continued battle to treat whoever came through the doors. Dr. Pimenta tells the heroic stories of how the entire system shifted to tackle this outbreak and how, ultimately, the staff managed to save lives.
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 3, 2020
225 people are currently reading
6190 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 219 reviews
May 13, 2021
(Throwback Review) "COVID-19 offers us a great opportunity for individual and collective recession. It is time to go back to the drawing board and rewrite the next phase of our existence. The upcoming generation has to read about how we fought this Pandemic in order to overcome similar situations during their times."- Olawale Daniel
This book is an engrossing account of Dr.Dominic Pimenta's life as a front-line NHS Doctor in the UK. We might have read many cursory articles about various people's experiences in dealing with COVID-19 in social media. This is one of the first books published which has an in-depth analysis of the Pandemic. He mentions all the events he encountered in chronological order from the 8th of February 2020. He also vividly says where all we went wrong in dealing with the Pandemic and what we should do to prevent similar mistakes in the future, and how disparate interest groups united in the fight against the Pandemic in a concise yet discerning manner.
"If this was indeed, as people are referring to it, a war, and the front-line will be the hospitals and the GP surgeries, then none of us are soldiers. We didn't sign out to be in the firing line. So no one is prepared, and many of us needed help."
What I learned from this book
1) The importance of going on a digital detox once in a while
The author tells us about a self-enforced social media ban. He immaculately construes the importance of taking a break from social media.
"Social media follows your brain with all the right social cues and impulses, but it doesn't feed your soul like an actual interaction should. It is like junk food for your mind ”
2) How demagogues egregious neglect made the COVID-19 worse in many countries
This is a vital topic that needs in-depth evaluation to prevent future pandemics. This happened in many countries, including China and the UK. The Medical Journal, BMJ mentioned UK's response to covid-19 as "too little, too late, too flawed." The problem which most of the countries faced was political advisors giving wrong advice to the scientific advisory group.
"Prime Minister Boris Johnson mentioned a strategy called, 'take it on the chin, let the virus pass through the population all in one go.’
1) This was when there was no vaccine.
2) There was no substantial evidence that being infected with the coronavirus actually produces protective immunity.
3) COVID 19 spectrum of illness showed about 15% needing intensive care, 1-3% dying, infecting 80% population which means millions will be requiring intensive care. NHS didn't have the capacity to deal with it, which in turn will cause other people to develop life-threatening conditions other than the coronavirus. They will also die which they otherwise wouldn't have.'"
3) How all the Doctors from various specialities worked together to face the pandemic crisis
The number of patients getting infected and admitted to the hospitals was increasing exponentially. There was a severe shortage of hospital beds, ventilators, and Doctors. Doctors from various specialties from both clinical and non-clinical sides came together and worked as a single team to tackle the crisis. Field hospitals were built in places like Central Park in NYC due to the severe hospital bed shortage. Even Medical students who had zero exposure to treating patients admirably jumped to the front-line to help in whatever way they can.
“The best Specialists are always the best Generalists as well.”
My favourite three lines from this book
“You can do Medicine good or fast. But you can’t do both.”
"With the proper information and rationale, which it is my job to provide, people have a nearly limitless capacity to adapt and to rise to the occasion, whether for themselves or their family members."
“Stay informed, stay safe and be kind.”
Rating
4/5 This is a must-read book if you are working in health care or if you want to know more about the virus that erased an entire year from all our lives.
December 2, 2020
Dominic Pimenta is a middle grade doctor halfway through specialist training in cardiology in London. 31-Jan-2020 was when the first two cases of Coronavirus were confirmed in the UK. He was picking up facts about COVID-19 in exactly the same manner as anyone that was not a doctor. Through the news outlets and social media.
Back in February there were many theories, ‘So we were dealing with a virus that easily spread, was 20 times more deadly than flu, was harder to detect in people and could cling to surfaces all around us.’ This is what we were being told at the time. The picture was very bleak. Was this going to be the same as Spanish flu back in 1918 that killed 50 to 100 million people? I remember reading the online papers showing Chinese people just falling down dead where they stood. Strap in folks, this is going to be rough.
Pimenta is in a position where he could assess the readiness of the NHS for a full-scale pandemic. He has concerns. Grave concerns. Lack of beds, lack of ventilators, lack of PPE equipment and lack of oxygen, 'Although nearly every hospital bed will have a port for oxygen to be supplied, not all the vents can be used at the same time, raising the very real possibility that in a hospital full of respiratory patients, suddenly we could run out of oxygen.’ Yikes!!
I am reading this book at the end of November 2020. The first wave is over, and we are in the middle of a second wave in the UK and a second lockdown, of sorts. Pimenta is outspoken to the point where he feared he could lose his job, but he felt the risk was worth it. He appears on BBC and Sky news. His concern about the lack of resources for the NHS pushes him to create a charity to fund the equipment required. There is no denying that the author is a bit of a media whore with an ego to go with it but you cannot knock him for what he has done. Truly terrific. I honestly do not know how he fits everything into his day.
It is an easy read but feels a little rushed. It is as if he has stopped a third of the way through the story. With life changing almost constantly the book already feels like a piece of history. I did not learn too much from it but what I hope the government and the NHS have learned is that this virus appears to be just a dress rehearsal for something bigger. Keep those 3D printers going Dr Pimenta. I think we’re going to need more visors.
Back in February there were many theories, ‘So we were dealing with a virus that easily spread, was 20 times more deadly than flu, was harder to detect in people and could cling to surfaces all around us.’ This is what we were being told at the time. The picture was very bleak. Was this going to be the same as Spanish flu back in 1918 that killed 50 to 100 million people? I remember reading the online papers showing Chinese people just falling down dead where they stood. Strap in folks, this is going to be rough.
Pimenta is in a position where he could assess the readiness of the NHS for a full-scale pandemic. He has concerns. Grave concerns. Lack of beds, lack of ventilators, lack of PPE equipment and lack of oxygen, 'Although nearly every hospital bed will have a port for oxygen to be supplied, not all the vents can be used at the same time, raising the very real possibility that in a hospital full of respiratory patients, suddenly we could run out of oxygen.’ Yikes!!
I am reading this book at the end of November 2020. The first wave is over, and we are in the middle of a second wave in the UK and a second lockdown, of sorts. Pimenta is outspoken to the point where he feared he could lose his job, but he felt the risk was worth it. He appears on BBC and Sky news. His concern about the lack of resources for the NHS pushes him to create a charity to fund the equipment required. There is no denying that the author is a bit of a media whore with an ego to go with it but you cannot knock him for what he has done. Truly terrific. I honestly do not know how he fits everything into his day.
It is an easy read but feels a little rushed. It is as if he has stopped a third of the way through the story. With life changing almost constantly the book already feels like a piece of history. I did not learn too much from it but what I hope the government and the NHS have learned is that this virus appears to be just a dress rehearsal for something bigger. Keep those 3D printers going Dr Pimenta. I think we’re going to need more visors.
November 19, 2020
Whilst it highlights the events that happened, I can’t help feeling this is a book that comforts Dr Pimenta’s ego more than anything else.
March 29, 2021
This is so interesting! We've all lived through this Covid-19 pandemic, so to see it through someone working at the NHS and have the brutal reality from that point - wow!
It's eye-opening, I definitely did not realise how bad things got for the NHS last year. Dr Dominic Pimenta and his team are absolutely amazing, battling at the hospitals every day and then doing the charity to help get PPE etc too!
This book is going to be read for years and years. This is a huge part of history, one of the biggest things that has happened. One of the deadliest. This book is brutal, honest and exactly what is needed for the NHS staff stories to be told.
It's eye-opening, I definitely did not realise how bad things got for the NHS last year. Dr Dominic Pimenta and his team are absolutely amazing, battling at the hospitals every day and then doing the charity to help get PPE etc too!
This book is going to be read for years and years. This is a huge part of history, one of the biggest things that has happened. One of the deadliest. This book is brutal, honest and exactly what is needed for the NHS staff stories to be told.
November 20, 2020
(3.5) We’re going to see a flood of such books; I’m most looking forward to Dr Rachel Clarke’s Breathtaking (coming in January). Given how long it takes to get a book from manuscript to published product, I was impressed to find this on my library’s Bestsellers shelf in October. Pimenta’s was an early voice warning of the scale of the crisis and the government’s lack of preparation. He focuses on a narrow window of time, from February – when he encountered his first apparent case of coronavirus – to May, when, in protest at a government official flouting lockdown (readers outside the UK might not be familiar with the Cummings affair), he resigned his cardiology job at a London hospital to focus on his new charity, HEROES, which supports healthcare workers via PPE, childcare grants, mental health help and so on.
It felt uncanny to be watching events from earlier in the year unfold again: so clearly on a trajectory to disaster, but still gripping in the telling. Pimenta’s recreated dialogue and scenes are excellent. He gives a real sense of the challenges in his personal and professional lives. But I think I’d like a little more distance before I read this in entirety. Just from my skim, I know that it’s a very fluid book that reads almost like a thriller, and it ends with a sober but sensible statement of the situation we face. (All royalties from the book go to HEROES.)
Some favorite lines:
“this will be akin to the Blitz, and … we need to start thinking of it like that. A marathon, not a sprint. … The challenges to come – a second or even third wave, a global recession, climate change, mass misinformation … and political and societal upheaval … – will all require more from all of us if we hope to meet them. The challenge of our generation is not behind us, it is only just beginning. I plan to continue doing something about it, and perhaps now you do as well. So stay informed, stay safe and be kind.”
Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.
It felt uncanny to be watching events from earlier in the year unfold again: so clearly on a trajectory to disaster, but still gripping in the telling. Pimenta’s recreated dialogue and scenes are excellent. He gives a real sense of the challenges in his personal and professional lives. But I think I’d like a little more distance before I read this in entirety. Just from my skim, I know that it’s a very fluid book that reads almost like a thriller, and it ends with a sober but sensible statement of the situation we face. (All royalties from the book go to HEROES.)
Some favorite lines:
“this will be akin to the Blitz, and … we need to start thinking of it like that. A marathon, not a sprint. … The challenges to come – a second or even third wave, a global recession, climate change, mass misinformation … and political and societal upheaval … – will all require more from all of us if we hope to meet them. The challenge of our generation is not behind us, it is only just beginning. I plan to continue doing something about it, and perhaps now you do as well. So stay informed, stay safe and be kind.”
Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.
December 12, 2020
An informative and often shocking tale of the build-up to and effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, told by a frontline doctor. His analysis of the failings of the Government handling of the crisis and the way the NHS somehow managed to cope despite everything, together with details of treatments and what really happens in ICU, was revealing and gripping. An excellent read if you can face it! - 9/10.
January 9, 2021
Published too soon, in my opinion. This book started off strong but quickly became repetitive. I think a truly reflective piece on the pandemic experience will need to be written once it's over - this felt rushed and unfinished.
February 21, 2021
3.5/5⭐
enjoyed that the audiobook was read by the author who has a very calming voice -- which worked nicely to at least somewhat balance out the distressing matter of the book and make it more easily digestible. it also felt like listening to someone just casually chat to me about their day and lockdown has made me so lonely that I really appreciated that! (god, I sound sad lol)
enjoyed that the audiobook was read by the author who has a very calming voice -- which worked nicely to at least somewhat balance out the distressing matter of the book and make it more easily digestible. it also felt like listening to someone just casually chat to me about their day and lockdown has made me so lonely that I really appreciated that! (god, I sound sad lol)
August 25, 2023
An eye opener to the early stages of how Covid-19 affected the NHS and every day lives as seen from a hospital doctor's point of view.
May 13, 2022
4.25 stars.
April 29, 2023
this was really interesting to read, just comparing it to other similar ones i’ve read and have preferred them much more
March 19, 2021
So odd to be reading about the pandemic while we are still in it. Very intriguing to hear from an NHS doctor on the front lines. So much respect for those healthcare workers.
September 9, 2020
Duty of Care is the first hand account of Dr Dominic Pimenta, a doctor that finds himself on the front line of the COVID-19 crisis. Recalling his daily experience from the days before COVID-19 was thought of as nothing to concern ourselves about, to being in ICU dealing with the pandemic head-on, Dr Pimenta shows us the very real picture of what life was like for those dealing with the most fast-spreading virus the world has ever seen.
More than being a voice for doctors and nurses within the NHS, Dr Pimenta shows us what family life was like throughout, about the concerns in the early days to him and his wife taking action in pushing the government to enforce a lockdown and starting up the charity HEROES.
I was in awe of how Dominic and his family had this real 'can-do' attitude towards anything, despite having two young children to care for and being a full-time doctor on the front-line, how in the world he found the time to start charities, make TV and radio appearances, do extensive research and experiments on anything that could possibly help his colleagues all over the country with the PPE shortages, with always the constant fear looming of catching the virus and making sure his family are always as safe as possible.
We are still not anywhere near the end of this pandemic, as Doctor Pimenta ensures us more and more towards the end of the book, I find his epilogue the stark reality of what is potentially to come if we all as individuals do not take COVID-19 seriously and do everything we can to keep one another safe, for those people that think we are over the worst I implore you to pick up this book and let it tell you the story of a loving father, husband and friend that had to take a daily risk to ensure his patients had the best chance of survival possible.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
More than being a voice for doctors and nurses within the NHS, Dr Pimenta shows us what family life was like throughout, about the concerns in the early days to him and his wife taking action in pushing the government to enforce a lockdown and starting up the charity HEROES.
I was in awe of how Dominic and his family had this real 'can-do' attitude towards anything, despite having two young children to care for and being a full-time doctor on the front-line, how in the world he found the time to start charities, make TV and radio appearances, do extensive research and experiments on anything that could possibly help his colleagues all over the country with the PPE shortages, with always the constant fear looming of catching the virus and making sure his family are always as safe as possible.
We are still not anywhere near the end of this pandemic, as Doctor Pimenta ensures us more and more towards the end of the book, I find his epilogue the stark reality of what is potentially to come if we all as individuals do not take COVID-19 seriously and do everything we can to keep one another safe, for those people that think we are over the worst I implore you to pick up this book and let it tell you the story of a loving father, husband and friend that had to take a daily risk to ensure his patients had the best chance of survival possible.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
February 15, 2021
I mostly decided to pick up this book since it was available on NetGalley's "read now" audiobooks. September 2020 was a bit too early to publish such a book since not all the puzzle pieces are revealed, but I'm guessing it was a matter of hitting the iron while it was hot. Dr. Domnici Pimenta talks about his experience moving from Cardiology to an Intensive Care Unit in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic. He covers everything starting from the first 2 UK COVID-19 cases in January when he was training in Cardiology. Listening to this at the end of 2020/beginning of 2021, it was very disheartening to remember how we were all fooled it won't get this serious, like there was no way it would affect the lives of people in other continents and get global. I remember myself trying to calm a patient (I'm a pharmacist) when the first cases outside of China were starting to appear. However, I feel lucky that in Romania, the measures were taken very quickly according to WHO's recommendations, despite public outrage. At the opposite pole, UK treated everything with a surprising lightness which turned out as it wow-what-a-surprise did. Duty of Care didn't really tell me anything I didn't know, only reminded me how frustrating being an ignored healthcare specialist is. I really hope Dr. Pimenta waited until the end of the pandemic to have the full picture before publishing a book about it.
January 18, 2021
I think Dr Pimenta did a great job adding a lot of detail about his experiences with COVID. It really does put you in the front seat of what it's truly like to be a Doctor, especially during these times. However, I wish he would have kept more towards his professional experiences. While I found reading about his personal life to be interesting, it did get to a point where I just wanted to skip a number of pages and get back to the main topic. In other words, the book could have been significantly shorter.
March 6, 2021
I really did not like the book. Give credit where credit is due, but don't blow your own horn in this manner.
January 6, 2021
Authored by HEROES founder Dominic Pimenta, Duty of Care provides a shocking snapshot in to life on a ICU ward during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as it hit the UK back in early 2020.
The first few chapters of Duty of Care present a series of shocking and insightful statistics which help the reader to understand the scale of the issue during the pandemic at the time. It was fascinating to read how unprepared the UK government were for the pandemic (in comparison to other countries) and the consequences of such actions later down the line. Sadly, for me this book fell a little flat particularly at the mid-way point where chapters became extremely repetitive and added little value to the book.
Duty of Care was authored during the height of the pandemic back in April/March '20 and published in order to raise funds for the HEROES charity. Reading this book at this time (Jan '21) now feels like the tip of the COVID-19 iceberg, and had this been published 18 months later I feel as if this book would have derived substantially more content and added to. Duty of Care reads a bit premature in comparison to what we are dealing with as of present.
The epilogue was the highlight for me, and if you do find yourself wanting to give up reading part of the way through then skip straight to the epilogue. Despite finding Duty of Care feeling overall flat to me, I would still recommend this to those who enjoy these types of 'doctor biographies'. In my opinion however, this just isn't one of the best on the market.
The first few chapters of Duty of Care present a series of shocking and insightful statistics which help the reader to understand the scale of the issue during the pandemic at the time. It was fascinating to read how unprepared the UK government were for the pandemic (in comparison to other countries) and the consequences of such actions later down the line. Sadly, for me this book fell a little flat particularly at the mid-way point where chapters became extremely repetitive and added little value to the book.
Duty of Care was authored during the height of the pandemic back in April/March '20 and published in order to raise funds for the HEROES charity. Reading this book at this time (Jan '21) now feels like the tip of the COVID-19 iceberg, and had this been published 18 months later I feel as if this book would have derived substantially more content and added to. Duty of Care reads a bit premature in comparison to what we are dealing with as of present.
The epilogue was the highlight for me, and if you do find yourself wanting to give up reading part of the way through then skip straight to the epilogue. Despite finding Duty of Care feeling overall flat to me, I would still recommend this to those who enjoy these types of 'doctor biographies'. In my opinion however, this just isn't one of the best on the market.
August 3, 2021
One of my favourite books. I listened to this as an audiobook narrated by the author and I feel it added so much to the story. I began listening to this during a recent lockdown in my area and found it incredibly cathartic in processing those emotions and in processing the emotions that were potentially pushed aside from last year working on a COVID ward and adapting with the ever-changing situation. Thank you Dominic! It's made me reflect and feel proud.
September 2, 2020
An interesting , emotional and eye opening read which takes you to the frontline of the NHS while they discover and deal with the pandemic.
I am a big fan of non fiction, I always enjoy losing myself in someone else’s true story or just learning about events happened in the past. I really like medical based Non Fiction and this was just such a good read, it’s written in such an easy flowing and in a way that just breaks down everything so well too.
If you’re a non fiction reader I would definitely recommend this one for you especially if you like books of a medical nature.
Thank you to the publisher for my gifted copy.
I am a big fan of non fiction, I always enjoy losing myself in someone else’s true story or just learning about events happened in the past. I really like medical based Non Fiction and this was just such a good read, it’s written in such an easy flowing and in a way that just breaks down everything so well too.
If you’re a non fiction reader I would definitely recommend this one for you especially if you like books of a medical nature.
Thank you to the publisher for my gifted copy.
March 19, 2021
The conclusion to this book was so well written and powerful. The stories of the NHS workers were harrowing, as was the suffering of Covid patients. A hard read but worth it.
July 23, 2024
Interesting read. Love to hear about doctor’s experiences of Covid. However, at times this author did drag it out. Not a great voice to listen to an audible book to!!!
August 30, 2020
I’ve read quite a few medical biographies recently and thought I’d leave it a little while before starting a new one, but when I saw this one written by an NHS doctor during the COVID-19 pandemic I was intrigued enough to give it a go!
Dr Pimenta recalls his experience of the early days of the pandemic, working in ICU and his charitable endeavours to support frontline workers as the situation escalated.
I found Dr Pimenta’s account of the beginning of the pandemic particularly affective. While he is only recounting events that happened at the beginning of this year, it feels like such a long time ago now! Like myself, Dr Pimenta found himself ahead of public opinion and governmental policy. Reliving those days surrounded by people (some of them friends or otherwise well respected) denying or ignorant to the seriousness of the events unfolding along with a government that was slow to take any action was difficult, almost like revisiting a trauma. Until I read this book I don’t think I’d taken any time to stop and reflect on this, with the situation changing almost daily it’s been a case of just trying to keep adapting and moving forward.
Dr Pimenta does a fantastic job of recounting the emotion of the time while also relating the facts and data of the virus in an easy, digestible way. I also found the brief mention of his past experience with chief medical advisor, Chris Whitty, of interest. These days It’s hard to imagine Professor Whitty not submerged in government work and in a scenario outside of the daily briefings, so to know a little about him as a doctor and teacher added another layer to his character.
As the book progresses, it reads more like a disaster novel than an account of true events!
The second half of the book focuses more on Dr Pimenta’s personal and professional response to the pandemic. Moving from his speciality to working on ICU, he was thrown into unfamiliar territory. Alongside this comes the fear for his personal safety as well as for his friends and family. Dr Pimenta didn’t stop there though, and along with his wife and others he was able to draft in he set up the charity HEROES. With the charity he aimed to support NHS staff during this time, promoting his campaign through the media, looking into initiative ways to overcome the PPE shortage and connecting organisations that could support each other. I felt quite exhausted after reading all that Dr Pimenta and his family/friends/colleagues achieved throughout this time but so thankful there are people out there who are willing to put in the time, energy and resources to do so much good.
I listened to this as an audiobook, narrated by Dr Pimenta himself. While it is clear this is not an area of speciality for him it felt appropriate to hear it straight from him given how personal the book is and he did a fine job of it.
Thank you very much to Netgalley and the authors for an advanced readers copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Dr Pimenta recalls his experience of the early days of the pandemic, working in ICU and his charitable endeavours to support frontline workers as the situation escalated.
I found Dr Pimenta’s account of the beginning of the pandemic particularly affective. While he is only recounting events that happened at the beginning of this year, it feels like such a long time ago now! Like myself, Dr Pimenta found himself ahead of public opinion and governmental policy. Reliving those days surrounded by people (some of them friends or otherwise well respected) denying or ignorant to the seriousness of the events unfolding along with a government that was slow to take any action was difficult, almost like revisiting a trauma. Until I read this book I don’t think I’d taken any time to stop and reflect on this, with the situation changing almost daily it’s been a case of just trying to keep adapting and moving forward.
Dr Pimenta does a fantastic job of recounting the emotion of the time while also relating the facts and data of the virus in an easy, digestible way. I also found the brief mention of his past experience with chief medical advisor, Chris Whitty, of interest. These days It’s hard to imagine Professor Whitty not submerged in government work and in a scenario outside of the daily briefings, so to know a little about him as a doctor and teacher added another layer to his character.
As the book progresses, it reads more like a disaster novel than an account of true events!
The second half of the book focuses more on Dr Pimenta’s personal and professional response to the pandemic. Moving from his speciality to working on ICU, he was thrown into unfamiliar territory. Alongside this comes the fear for his personal safety as well as for his friends and family. Dr Pimenta didn’t stop there though, and along with his wife and others he was able to draft in he set up the charity HEROES. With the charity he aimed to support NHS staff during this time, promoting his campaign through the media, looking into initiative ways to overcome the PPE shortage and connecting organisations that could support each other. I felt quite exhausted after reading all that Dr Pimenta and his family/friends/colleagues achieved throughout this time but so thankful there are people out there who are willing to put in the time, energy and resources to do so much good.
I listened to this as an audiobook, narrated by Dr Pimenta himself. While it is clear this is not an area of speciality for him it felt appropriate to hear it straight from him given how personal the book is and he did a fine job of it.
Thank you very much to Netgalley and the authors for an advanced readers copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
September 30, 2020
Fascinating.
Dominic Pimenta was a cardiac surgeon in a busy London hospital when news of a new strain of a potentially deadly coronavirus started to filter through to him. The more he learned, the more concerned he became. He started to wear a mask for his tube journey in and out of work, but couldn't understand why the government was taking so little action.
This is a behind-the-scenes story of the build-up of Covid19, from a rumour coming out of China, to a deadly onslaught of the NHS in Britain. Dominic Pimenta was there, in the hospital, trying to spread the alarm. He was frustrated by the fact he couldn't test the early cases because the requirement for testing was that patients had to have travelled recently, or had contact with someone who had. These suspect patients went into the regular wards because there was no official reason to isolate them.
As the cases began to trickle in, gradually and then rapidly increasing in number, the medical staff began to struggle with shortage of protective equipment and eventually oxygen. Doctors and nurses were transferred from other wards, trained in emergency procedures and allocated to a Covid ward. As people stayed away from hospital for routine treatments, so more Covid wards were opened and more staff cross-trained. The work was grueling and continuous, but in spite of the toll it was having on staff, they kept going relentlessly. In the face of seemingly hopeless odds, several of the patients began to turn a corner and improve.
As time progressed it became more clear what would help the patients and what was less useful. A procedure called 'proning' appeared to be particularly effective. This involved turning patients at regular intervals, allowing the more functional parts of the lungs to access oxygen that was pooling elsewhere.
Throughout all this Mr Pimenta was not only working his shifts on the Covid wards but also building a charity. He and his medically trained wife wanted to provide food and drink for staff and psychiatric support for those that were struggling. As if that wasn't enough, his organisation started to procure the protective equipment that had been running short due to inadequate government response. He was even involved in starting up a 3D farm, manufacturing masks and protective eye coverings.
This is one incredible man who should be recognised in the honours lists, in my opinion.
He reads his own story but with humility. The only parts I was less keen on were the Q&A sessions, which interrupted the flow and didn't really add a lot.
For anyone who has lived through this and would be interested in knowing what was going on behind the scenes, this is a must-read.
Dominic Pimenta was a cardiac surgeon in a busy London hospital when news of a new strain of a potentially deadly coronavirus started to filter through to him. The more he learned, the more concerned he became. He started to wear a mask for his tube journey in and out of work, but couldn't understand why the government was taking so little action.
This is a behind-the-scenes story of the build-up of Covid19, from a rumour coming out of China, to a deadly onslaught of the NHS in Britain. Dominic Pimenta was there, in the hospital, trying to spread the alarm. He was frustrated by the fact he couldn't test the early cases because the requirement for testing was that patients had to have travelled recently, or had contact with someone who had. These suspect patients went into the regular wards because there was no official reason to isolate them.
As the cases began to trickle in, gradually and then rapidly increasing in number, the medical staff began to struggle with shortage of protective equipment and eventually oxygen. Doctors and nurses were transferred from other wards, trained in emergency procedures and allocated to a Covid ward. As people stayed away from hospital for routine treatments, so more Covid wards were opened and more staff cross-trained. The work was grueling and continuous, but in spite of the toll it was having on staff, they kept going relentlessly. In the face of seemingly hopeless odds, several of the patients began to turn a corner and improve.
As time progressed it became more clear what would help the patients and what was less useful. A procedure called 'proning' appeared to be particularly effective. This involved turning patients at regular intervals, allowing the more functional parts of the lungs to access oxygen that was pooling elsewhere.
Throughout all this Mr Pimenta was not only working his shifts on the Covid wards but also building a charity. He and his medically trained wife wanted to provide food and drink for staff and psychiatric support for those that were struggling. As if that wasn't enough, his organisation started to procure the protective equipment that had been running short due to inadequate government response. He was even involved in starting up a 3D farm, manufacturing masks and protective eye coverings.
This is one incredible man who should be recognised in the honours lists, in my opinion.
He reads his own story but with humility. The only parts I was less keen on were the Q&A sessions, which interrupted the flow and didn't really add a lot.
For anyone who has lived through this and would be interested in knowing what was going on behind the scenes, this is a must-read.
November 28, 2020
I really love medical books and even though it’s been a scary and unsettling time I’ve really wanted to learn more about COVID-19 in regards to the medical impacts on both patients and the NHS- so obviously I’ve been really looking forward to reading this one.
Greatly informative and we written I found this really eye opening and makes me almost wish I had been in a position to help more rather than just stay at home. The medical/hospital side of this book really dragged me and held my interest.
A great proportion of this book is about the Doctors life and how he and his family/friend are feeling and surviving through the pandemic. They are a great charity (HEROES) and there’s no denying that the work they did and continue to do is phenomenal but for me, the aspects of the book that focused on that just didn’t hold my interest.
Greatly informative and we written I found this really eye opening and makes me almost wish I had been in a position to help more rather than just stay at home. The medical/hospital side of this book really dragged me and held my interest.
A great proportion of this book is about the Doctors life and how he and his family/friend are feeling and surviving through the pandemic. They are a great charity (HEROES) and there’s no denying that the work they did and continue to do is phenomenal but for me, the aspects of the book that focused on that just didn’t hold my interest.
November 9, 2022
I'm an absolute sucker for these sort of tell-all books from the frontline of the NHS. This one focused on the last couple of years as staff struggled to fight against the incoming Covid 19 pandemic. As expected, there are lots of painful stories but also moments of tenderness and joy to be read here, so its not all doom and gloom. A highly intriguing read for those a fan of this area of the book world.
April 18, 2021
Audiobook review. Read by the author in a dull monotone. He thinks he’s the dogs bollox as a doctor, and maybe he is, but he’s a rubbish narrator. Disappointed
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 31, 2020
Last book of the year, from our pandemic reading group, is the first book I have read about the COVID-19 pandemic specifically, a first-hand account from a brilliant and highly civic-minded young doctor in the UK. When I hear him describe his fitful efforts in multiple fields -- cardiology or AI, or both? -- and his idea, early in the crisis, to start a charity to help NHL doctors with PPE and childcare and pizzas and so forth, I can think of nothing so much as Harvard days, 1998-2002, where it seemed that all of us (except me, curiously? I think I only ever wanted to read a lot, and listen to good music from time to time) had energy and ambition to start things and lead things. If people like Pimenta made the policies, would the world be a better place? Why did Britain, like the USA, take such a fiendishly bone-headed approach to the whole affair -- is it a direct consequence of faith in markets and smaller government, or is there some more structural culture or society feature here?
In any case, Pimenta does a wonderful job, supplying just the objective testimony we need through out the book (now I know what 'proning' is, and quite a bit more about aerosols) to sense the lives of the health care providers, who in treating COVID-19 are doing something along the lines of what Pimenta calls a "marathon," though it's really more like an ultramarathon or Ironman competition, a completely ridiculous call to service, which, given how many have actually stepped up the challenge, one can't help but find some hope restored in the human spirit.
But as Pimenta trenchantly reminds us in his epilogue, the political environment must be open, transparent, and supportive of factual and practical methods in order to make the best use of such people as Dr. Pimenta. That the NHL was under-resourced in 2019 already shows major flaws in Britain's system from the get-go. That it ever mentioned the word "herd immunity" shows callousness and inhumanity that Dickens could never have dreamed of. Surely it takes more than money, and more than stupidity, to be that cruel. I'm diving straight into Taleb's Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets for my work on the same day I finished this book, and I get the increasing sense government only gets worse at dealing with "Black Swan" events when they take on the epistemological cults of the financial markets. Indeed, dogmatic faith in and service to the stock market as proxy for economic size may have been what Boris and Donald had most in common -- that and the deep conviction that they could shape reality with narrative-building in the mass media. Now that many thousands are dead, maybe we will agree to agree that it is reality that shapes us, and not the other way around.
In any case, Pimenta does a wonderful job, supplying just the objective testimony we need through out the book (now I know what 'proning' is, and quite a bit more about aerosols) to sense the lives of the health care providers, who in treating COVID-19 are doing something along the lines of what Pimenta calls a "marathon," though it's really more like an ultramarathon or Ironman competition, a completely ridiculous call to service, which, given how many have actually stepped up the challenge, one can't help but find some hope restored in the human spirit.
But as Pimenta trenchantly reminds us in his epilogue, the political environment must be open, transparent, and supportive of factual and practical methods in order to make the best use of such people as Dr. Pimenta. That the NHL was under-resourced in 2019 already shows major flaws in Britain's system from the get-go. That it ever mentioned the word "herd immunity" shows callousness and inhumanity that Dickens could never have dreamed of. Surely it takes more than money, and more than stupidity, to be that cruel. I'm diving straight into Taleb's Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets for my work on the same day I finished this book, and I get the increasing sense government only gets worse at dealing with "Black Swan" events when they take on the epistemological cults of the financial markets. Indeed, dogmatic faith in and service to the stock market as proxy for economic size may have been what Boris and Donald had most in common -- that and the deep conviction that they could shape reality with narrative-building in the mass media. Now that many thousands are dead, maybe we will agree to agree that it is reality that shapes us, and not the other way around.
October 1, 2021
It’s hard to do a retrospective of a pandemic that is still very much widespread in many parts of the world, but this book does a great job of laying out how utterly wrong the UK government got in during the first wave, and pointing what will need to happen to avoid these failures going forward.
Dr Pimenta was working in cardiology earlier this year, eventually being transfered to provide support in intensive care units treating patients with COVID-19. In this book, after providing a bit of a biography, he shares his experience – day by day at the start, then week by week. He expresses his incredulity at how slowly the UK Government reacted despite evidence of what was happening in Italy. The UK was one of the last European country to lock down, likely costing thousands of lives. They also had policies like refusing to test people without travel history even after there was community spread.
But more than that, the UK government was responsible for so many cuts to the NHS over the years that it was just not resourced to respond to this pandemic. Two years ago there were as many as 100,000 unfilled posts. Hospitals were running at 95% capacity according to Dr Pimento, which meant very little wiggle room for something like this disease outbreak. Yes, it is great to have national healthcare (the US is still an utter shit show when it comes to health care), but one must actually FUND that healthcare to ensure it serves all who need it.
Dr Pimento also shares how he and his wife, who is also a doctor, and some friends and family decided they needed to do something, so they started the HEROES charity (now called Help Them Help Us: https://www.helpthemhelpus.co.uk/) to raise money to get PPE and other support, such as food delivery and mental health care for NHS workers. Something the government should have been handling, but yet again, a failure.
The book was hard to listen to at times, as all of this is so fresh, but it wasn’t as emotionally draining as it could have been. Two bits stand out as memorable: the detailed description of all the medical support needed for one ICU patient, and the first death from the disease that Dr Pimento is present for.
The audio book features a Q&A with the author at the end of every chapter, with Dr Pimenta being asked one or two questions relevant to what we’ve previously learned. I found that to be really helpful, especially as I often had the same question that was asked.
Duty of Care, is a startlingly personal account. It can be described as a memoir, a thriller or a horror story, but really it is all at once. He thinks of the book as a corrective. “For lots of people, lockdown was this intangible inconvenience. You just stayed at home until you were told not to. You didn’t see it. But we did. We saw the wave hit. We saw people sicker than we’ve ever seen – a huge loss of life. And what I worry about is this whole episode has gone undercover. The ITUs were closed. Relatives couldn’t visit.” He hopes that by describing his own experience, the book will provide “an idea of what it was like, what it achieved, what your sacrifice achieved”.
Dr Pimenta was working in cardiology earlier this year, eventually being transfered to provide support in intensive care units treating patients with COVID-19. In this book, after providing a bit of a biography, he shares his experience – day by day at the start, then week by week. He expresses his incredulity at how slowly the UK Government reacted despite evidence of what was happening in Italy. The UK was one of the last European country to lock down, likely costing thousands of lives. They also had policies like refusing to test people without travel history even after there was community spread.
But more than that, the UK government was responsible for so many cuts to the NHS over the years that it was just not resourced to respond to this pandemic. Two years ago there were as many as 100,000 unfilled posts. Hospitals were running at 95% capacity according to Dr Pimento, which meant very little wiggle room for something like this disease outbreak. Yes, it is great to have national healthcare (the US is still an utter shit show when it comes to health care), but one must actually FUND that healthcare to ensure it serves all who need it.
Dr Pimento also shares how he and his wife, who is also a doctor, and some friends and family decided they needed to do something, so they started the HEROES charity (now called Help Them Help Us: https://www.helpthemhelpus.co.uk/) to raise money to get PPE and other support, such as food delivery and mental health care for NHS workers. Something the government should have been handling, but yet again, a failure.
The book was hard to listen to at times, as all of this is so fresh, but it wasn’t as emotionally draining as it could have been. Two bits stand out as memorable: the detailed description of all the medical support needed for one ICU patient, and the first death from the disease that Dr Pimento is present for.
The audio book features a Q&A with the author at the end of every chapter, with Dr Pimenta being asked one or two questions relevant to what we’ve previously learned. I found that to be really helpful, especially as I often had the same question that was asked.
Duty of Care, is a startlingly personal account. It can be described as a memoir, a thriller or a horror story, but really it is all at once. He thinks of the book as a corrective. “For lots of people, lockdown was this intangible inconvenience. You just stayed at home until you were told not to. You didn’t see it. But we did. We saw the wave hit. We saw people sicker than we’ve ever seen – a huge loss of life. And what I worry about is this whole episode has gone undercover. The ITUs were closed. Relatives couldn’t visit.” He hopes that by describing his own experience, the book will provide “an idea of what it was like, what it achieved, what your sacrifice achieved”.
February 7, 2024
A very interesting read. Firstly, because I now have enough distance to revisit the events of 2020. I am not sure I could have read the book even a year ago. Secondly, because of how many things I had forgotten or blocked. Tracking the numbers from Italy in early March 2020 when we were only 2 weeks behind them and the UK government had still done nothing. How long it took them to implement checks at Heathrow. The big and small traumas of 2020 and 2021, not least being continually gaslit by the government. The book details how badly prepared hospitals and healthcare workers were, with some obvious things not being done even quite late in the day. Most people seem not to want to talk about Covid anymore, but the pandemic is ongoing, and the events of 2020/2021 affected us all. There are lessons to be learnt. A sobering read, from the early days of the pandemic and written almost in real-time, like reading a war-time diary from a war I (thankfully) lived through.
One criticism is that the author comes across as someone who is a complete workaholic. Bragging about writing a 5000 word document on your honeymoon or a business plan at a wedding is not the tell you think it is. I'd be curious to read his wife's diaries from the same period.
One criticism is that the author comes across as someone who is a complete workaholic. Bragging about writing a 5000 word document on your honeymoon or a business plan at a wedding is not the tell you think it is. I'd be curious to read his wife's diaries from the same period.
August 19, 2021
I have the upmost respect for Dr. Dominic Pimenta - not only has he gone through on of the worst thing to happen to him as a career as a doctor, not once did he let it change him. He saved people’s lives and worked tirelessly throughout a pandemic to set up multiple charities to change NHS workers lives and the lives of their families too.
It was really eye-opening to read what happened throughout the pandemic through, not only someone else’s eyes but specifically, the eyes of a doctor working in Intensive care. I learnt so many things I wasn’t aware of previously and I have such compassion for the doctors, nurses and anyone working at a hospital during this time. I am endlessly thankful to them.
If you weren’t sure of the impact of covid-19 on the NHS, then I highly suggest you read this book.
It was really eye-opening to read what happened throughout the pandemic through, not only someone else’s eyes but specifically, the eyes of a doctor working in Intensive care. I learnt so many things I wasn’t aware of previously and I have such compassion for the doctors, nurses and anyone working at a hospital during this time. I am endlessly thankful to them.
If you weren’t sure of the impact of covid-19 on the NHS, then I highly suggest you read this book.
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