Book Review

At first glance, this title is rather appealing to paramedics. But as the literary doctrine says, never judge a book by its cover.

The positives first. Text boxes throughout the book highlight ‘key facts’ in relation to a given medical condition and help the reader to focus on what is really happening with the patient. The authors have identified ‘pearls’ for improving patient outcomes and conversely, pitfalls in treatment are well documented.

The text is well-referenced and the initial chapter on chest pain is an excellent overview of cardiac-related emergencies. But in keeping with the rest of the book, detail is lacking on the desired clinical interventions at the first point of contact with a patient.

This is one of the limitations which paramedics may find with this book—its primary focus is not on the prehospital phase of medical emergencies.

The chapter on trauma is testimony to this, as it is considered entirely from the perspective of an A and E department. A broader range of medical conditions would also have been useful, especially those which paramedics are likely to come across such as cardiac arrests. More use of visual representations of medical conditions would also be welcomed.