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The Nurses
Book is in great condition with minimal wear!
- GenresFiction
Hardcover
First published December 31, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 24, 2017
Well ... this book is 32 years old ... and I'm hearing about some of the same ol' issues still happening today that I just read about.
March 16, 2019
Rubbish - didn't get past page 14!
April 17, 2014
This is a fictional account of the roles nurses play in a large hospital system, with a bit of workplace romance thrown in for good measure. Frede focuses on certain units of the hospital, and in the case of the Emergency Department, specifically the psychiatric nurses there and some of the patients they care for in an approximately 1-2 week period. Back Bay Metropolitan is in the rougher parts of Boston, so like many inner city institutions, it is plagued by budget concerns, outdated equipment, and patients whose complex and varied needs test the expertise of the staff members. When the house officers (interns and residents) stage a walkout and leave the hospital in the care of the senior staff, usually private practice doctors who haven't done hospital work in many years, it is the nurses who must keep things running.
What I liked best about the book is that they followed some of the patients throughout their journey from admission to discharge and the way the nurses on the various units cared for them. I do wish the author would have put even more focus on the patients, because there were some who only merited a brief mention, though they were included on the character list provided at the beginning of the book, and I did wonder what happened to them. In exchange, I would leave out some of the extracurriculars, like the relationship one of the nurses was having with the head of the hospital, and the constant whining 2 of the supposedly VIP patients have about not being famous anymore.
Plots I wouldn't leave out include the 3 events that could be seen as a direct consequence of the house officer walkout, because they might be considered extra but are a way to tie in how a move like that affects more than just the immediate care of the patients. Also, the stigma of being a male nurse is addressed in the custody battle one of the nurses has with his ex-wife, so even though it doesn't seem like it is a necessary plotline, I found it to tie in well to the overall story.
All in all, a good book and I would definitely read more by Frede. Perhaps a bit long, but there is a thoroughness in the book that justifies its length.
What I liked best about the book is that they followed some of the patients throughout their journey from admission to discharge and the way the nurses on the various units cared for them. I do wish the author would have put even more focus on the patients, because there were some who only merited a brief mention, though they were included on the character list provided at the beginning of the book, and I did wonder what happened to them. In exchange, I would leave out some of the extracurriculars, like the relationship one of the nurses was having with the head of the hospital, and the constant whining 2 of the supposedly VIP patients have about not being famous anymore.
Plots I wouldn't leave out include the 3 events that could be seen as a direct consequence of the house officer walkout, because they might be considered extra but are a way to tie in how a move like that affects more than just the immediate care of the patients. Also, the stigma of being a male nurse is addressed in the custody battle one of the nurses has with his ex-wife, so even though it doesn't seem like it is a necessary plotline, I found it to tie in well to the overall story.
All in all, a good book and I would definitely read more by Frede. Perhaps a bit long, but there is a thoroughness in the book that justifies its length.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews