A few years ago it was clear that Medicine Recall was becoming too large a book to be easily carried around. Feedback from medical students included comments that their coat pockets were being stretched and that they were leaning to one side. We therefore undertook two projects. The first was to shorten Medicine Recall to be more concise and pocket friendly, and the second was to write Advanced Medicine Recall to target fourth-year students and residents. Advanced Medicine Recall is an attempt to focus more on the advanced features of the disease processes.
With that in mind, all the sections in Advanced Medicine Recall have been reviewed by a Chief or Advanced Medical Resident with the thought that the information presented is something that fourth-year students and interns should be expected to know. There is some (<10%) deliberate repetition between Medicine Recall and Advanced Medicine Recall, and there are several reasons for this. First, the medical students who reviewed the chapters may have felt that some of the information needed to be there. Second, the Chief Medical Resident and the Attending authors may have felt that some of the information was worthy of repetition or, in some cases, that it made sections flow better. In many instances, when the questions between the two books are similar, answers in Advanced Medicine Recall have been adjusted to reflect a higher level of knowledge. Readers are, therefore, referred to Medical Recall to review the more basic material for each section.
Like all of the other books in the “Recall” series, this book is organized in a self-study/quiz format with questions on the left and answers on the right. It may be worthwhile for the reader, while reading through the book, to cover the right-hand column with the enclosed bookmark. As in the previous version of Medicine Recall, the chapters are organized by systems, with section abbreviations and definitions preceding each discussion. When applicable, a list of appropriate landmark clinical trials completes the chapter.
We hope that you will find this book a helpful addition to your library.
Pearls As with Medicine Recall:
- Remember to wash your hands. Patients really notice this and it is critical. This is one of the few things we can do to prevent the spread of infection. Do it in front of the patient (at the end of the exam or preferably both at the beginning and the end).
- Respect the patient's modesty. Always use curtains, gowns, and other appropriate coverings.
- The patient's confidentiality should be maintained beyond the patient's room (e.g., the patient's case should not be offhandedly discussed in an elevator, while eating, or while traveling to and from work); the patient's family or friends or others may overhear.
- Remember not to neglect your private life. Relationships require time and effort to build and keep strong. If you are unhappy in your private life you will likely also be unhappy in your professional life.
- In delivering bad news, it is often best to diminish the patient's anxiety by sitting and delivering the information without delay. Because much of the remainder of the conversation will often be forgotten, it is often best to return to the patient later to review important data.
- Depression is common. Approximately 60% of medical patients have depression as an important aspect of their illness.
- Heart disease, smoking-related illness, and cancer are common illnesses. One or more of these should always be considered in the differential diagnosis.
- A common illness presenting in an uncommon fashion is more common than an uncommon illness presenting in a common fashion. (In other words, when you hear hoofbeats, always think of horses, not zebras.) Furthermore, the diagnosis should be in the differential the majority of the time after a careful history and physical. A “shotgun” approach in ordering labs and tests is generally nonproductive and almost always not cost-effective or helpful. This approach can lead to false-positive test results, which can derail a workup.
- Never talk disparagingly about your colleagues. Talking in a disparaging fashion about referring colleagues only undermines the patient's confidence in the referring physician or in you. If the patient has had a long-term relationship with the referring physician, the patient may trust the other physician's word over yours, regardless of who is right. On the attending level, talking negatively about another physician may eventually sever a referral source, and it is just plain wrong to do.
- Before ending an interview or discussion with a patient, always ask whether the patient has questions (and not as you are going to the door).
- Remember to think at least twice before answering emails to make sure that the email conveys what you want it to and nothing more. Emails can easily be copied, sent along, and saved forever. They can come back to haunt you.
- When you write something in the chart, think how it would sound were it to be read aloud in court. If you write your notes that way, you will always be safe.
Book Details
- Paperback: 800 pages
- Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 1 edition (March 31, 2008)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0781776295
- ISBN-13: 978-0781776295
- Product Dimensions: 8 x 5 x 1.5 inches
List Price: $51.50