Book Review

Representing a common medical emergency for paramedics, any text which covers the management of diabetes should be high on their reading list. But this book is very much of a mixed bag and one which ultimately focuses on the diabetic patient after they have been admitted to a treatment centre.

As the reader might expect, the underlying pathophysiology receives detailed attention and makes for informative reading. But the additional coverage of the medical condition perhaps strays from a paramedic’s normal scope of practice.

Not all the content is aimed at treating diabetic patients in the prehospital environment, with the management of diabetes in hospital wards and advice for junior doctors reviewing diabetic patients amongst the content. In fact, the authors’ stated intent is to provide ‘...a guide to the management of diabetes in the hospital setting’. Yet, with the mis-management of diabetes cited as a principal reason for hospital admissions, paramedics should certainly take something from this book.