Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science by Atul Gawande

Complications by Atul Gawande
Non-Fiction

Dr. Gawande is a surgical resident in Boston and writes about the somewhat taboo subject of how medicine isn't an exact science. This book covers many subjects, including how doctors really are just humans, how easy it is for them to make mistakes, and when good doctors go bad. Then, Dr. Gawande supplies lots of examples from his career and others that prove these points.

Some of the points that Gawande raise are alarming, but as you read through the reasoning behind them, you can understand them. For example, how do doctors get practice on new technologies or methodologies? They have to practice somewhere and you'd be surprised how little they get before their first patient is subjected to the new procedure.

The first third of the book had me captivated. It was kind of scary, yet very interesting. I found that the middle of the book dragged a bit but that things picked up again near the end.

First Line: "I was once on trauma duty when a young man about twenty years old was rolled in, shot in the buttock."

Rating:

(4/5)