Some recently-reviewed books have left me scratching my follicly-challenged head as to their relevance to the JPP readership, so hope then for my hair line (receding faster than the outgoing tide) when another in the successful ABC series emerges.
My initial thoughts on unpacking this latest offering from the ABC dynasty was how it was able to effectively address all aspects of such an incredibly broad field such as ‘pre-hospital emergency medicine’ into such a slender volume. The reality is that it doesn't. But don't skip onto the classifieds just yet!
As you would expect from the notable contributors and their background, the emphasis in these pages is heavily biased towards trauma rather than ‘medical’ cases as such. For example, key areas for paramedics include management of COPD patients and sepsis (to name but two), yet these are afforded half a page and one side of a page respectively. Clearly lacking in substance here and a similar tale for other medically-orientated ailments.
But an emphasis on trauma management is not necessarily a bad thing, with regional trauma networks now well established in most areas of the UK. Most traumatic scenarios are covered, although some of the interventions detailed will be restricted to clinicians with a critical care focus. Illustrations are used appropriately and are easy to understand, and photographs supplement the text well. The prescribed interventions are described lucidly but not in any great detail, and certainly not to the level which any practitioner would be required to understand or demonstrate before applying the skill safely and competently, e.g. intercostal drain insertions and thoracostomies.
So a definitive text for pre-hospital emergency medicine it is not. Still, used in conjunction with other texts with a specific medical/trauma focus or A&P orientation, this certainly has some value. Easy to read and well-presented subject matter does not quite compensate for a lack of breadth and depth in content, but I would suggest it is worth a perusal if some generic reading on prehospital trauma is required.