Critical
Stories from the front line of intensive care medicine
by Matt Morgan
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Pub Date 1 Jul 2019 | Archive Date 29 May 2019
Simon and Schuster UK Fiction | Simon & Schuster UK
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Description
Adam Kay, author of This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor
'[Matt's] wit and compassion are everywhere in this enlightening book.' The Sunday Times
'This book offers real insight into life and death medicine.'
Dr. Michael Mosley
'Compassionate and moving… Morgan provides a rich array of stories and characters. Alongside the cases studies, he details the development of the medical practices and technology – from the iron lung to ultrasound – that have helped make such life-saving procedures possible.' The Observer
'This book is marvellous: buy it, share it, recommend it.... We are fortunate to have dedicated, caring and humble folks such as Doc Morgan on the Critical Care front line. We are even better off when a writer can capture all that this exciting, mad, glorious and even exasperating job means. If you work in healthcare, know somebody that does, or simply inhabit a body then this book is for you: in fact it's critical.'
Peter Brindley, Professor of Critical Care Medicine, Anesthesiology, Medical Ethics University of Alberta
'Just wonderful. I love the exploration of what it means to survive, at what cost and so on. Such an important factor and it's a real problem with what we do. An old surgeon once told me ‘just because we can, doesn’t mean we should. Operating is the easiest thing in the world, not doing so is incredibly challenging’. A lovely book.' Dr Nikki Stamp FRACS Cardiothoracic and Transplant Surgeon and author of Can You Die of a Broken Heart?
‘An illuminating, compassionate insight into the fascinating world of intensive care.’ Leah Hazzard, author of Hard Pushed
Critical is an intelligent, compelling and profoundly insightful journey into the world of intensive care medicine and the lives of people who have forever been changed by it.
Being critically ill means one or more of your vital organs have failed – this could be your lungs, your heart, your kidneys, gut or even your brain. Starting with the first recognised case in which a little girl was saved by intensive care in 1952 in Copenhagen, Matt writes brilliantly about the fascinating history, practices and technology in this newest of all the major medical specialties. Matt guides us around the ICU by guiding us around the body and the different organs, and in this way, we learn not only the stories of many of the patients he’s treated over the years, but also about the various functions different parts of the body.
He draws on his time spent with real patients, on the brink of death, and explains how he and his colleagues fight against the odds to help them live. Happily many of his cases have happy endings, but Matt also writes movingly about those cases which will always remain with him – the cases where the mysteries of the body proved too hard to solve, or diagnoses came too late or made no difference to the outcome.
Advance Praise
'This book offers real insight into life and death medicine.' Dr. Michael Mosley
'This book offers real insight into life and death medicine.' Dr. Michael Mosley
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781471173035 |
| PRICE | £16.99 (GBP) |
Links
Featured Reviews
Samantha B, Media/Journalist
Critical is one of those memoirs that will stay with me for a long time. I used to shy away from reading about death – not anymore. Thank goodness because I would have missed this powerful reflection on working in an Intensive Care Unit. I often wondered how those in the medical profession squared saving the lives of so-called ‘undesirables’ or those who are less than perfect in the eyes of society. Dr Morgan’s philosophy is extremely moving. I had to stop and really think about his approach. He’s right of course (no spoilers!).
Critical is one of those books you’ll find yourself reading out passages to loved ones around you. Everything from what is likely to kill you to how to talk to someone who has lost someone.
I rarely return to a book, but I will absolutely pick up this one again. Critical is a well-written and profoundly moving addition to the medical memoir genre.
Lisa H, Reviewer
Absolutely loved reading this...it brings my job into perspective.
Nursing is so different and difficult at times and seeing it through the eyes of someone else is breathtaking.
Most people take nurses and doctors for granted and I would recommend this book to anyone who would like to understand the difficult challenges and decisions we have to make.
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