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How Doctors Think (精装)
by Jerome Groopman
| Category:
Health |
| Market price: ¥ 268.00
MSL price:
¥ 258.00
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| Stock:
Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
Dr. Groopman's latest book opens our minds to the 'heuristics' and the limitations of it, with each chapter deals with a different area of medicine and a different type of patient. |
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AllReviews |
1 Total 1 pages 6 items |
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Robert (MSL quote), USA
<2007-06-04 00:00>
How Doctors Think is an interesting book about the medical field. I was drawn to the title, because my health is so important to me. I learned that the way a doctor communicates with a patient about medication or a problem is very important. In one study Groopman cited in this book, 45 doctors caring for 909 patients did not tell the patient how long to take a new medication or what side effects it might cause. Nearly half of the doctors failed to specify the dose and duration of the medication. This is because doctors are in hurry to see as many patients as they can.
Doctors look for symptoms when a patient is sick. They can make the mistake of focusing solely on one medical possiblity while overlooking others. This is called the error of anchoring. Groopman also talks about why doctors are uncertain sometimes. I found out that doctors are uncertain in making decisions because of limitations of current medical knowledge and incomplete mastery of available knowledge. Doctors are not gods, and they don't always have all the answers. The chapter in which Groopman talks about his friend and her faith in God. This chapter is very touching. Her adopted infant daughter from Vietnam is incorrectly diagnosed with pneumonia and other medical problems. Groopman devotes another entire chapter on the subject of how aggressively new medications are being marketed to doctors. These companies offer doctors free gifts and trips just to get the doctor to use the product on their patients.
I also learned that the way a doctor phrases his response to a patient is important. If a doctor phrases a response in a positive manner using percentage increase of improvement instead of just ramdom numbers, the patient will feel better about treatment. Groopman encourages patients to ask questions of their physician like "What else can it be?" Upon listening to a patient ask that question, a doctor will investigate deeper to find the cause of the patient's problem. This is a fascinating honest book about how doctors really think. I have a greater appreciation of the difficult job they have after reading this book. |
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Susan Boswell (MSL quote), USA
<2007-06-04 00:00>
First of all, I applaud and admire Dr. Groopman's honesty and the admission that doctors are fallible. Although this book is dedicated to helping patients communicate with doctors by helping them understand how doctors think, it appears to focus more on helping physicians avoid diagnostic mistakes by reminding them of the consequences of short sighted and odds-based reasoning. This book offers numerous case study examples showing the consequences of physicians' focusing only on symptoms that fit their preconceived diagnosis rather than truly listening to the patient and asking smart questions to get more information from the patient. Dr. Groopman writes that miscommunication leads to misdiagnosis but does not really outline a method to help patients communicate better with their doctors.
I think a major benefit of this book to patients is that it will encourage them to speak up and to seek out other physicians for help if they do not receive the help they need from their physician. Dr. Groopman has indeed written a book describing how doctors think that will help patients understand doctors better. That's half the information that patients need. The other half is contained in a book written by Jane Williams. That book, Patient Self-Help Guide: How to Talk to Your Doctor contains the rest of the information that patients need to communicate with doctors. Ms. Williams agrees with Dr. Groopman that miscommunication leads to misdiagnosis and covers this at the beginning of her book. However, she teaches patients how to accurately and quickly describe their symptoms to help the physicians make accurate diagnoses the first time and avoid the diagnostic problems outlined in Dr. Groopman's book, and does so in plain language that the average patient can easily understand.
I own both of these books and have found them to be very good books with each having different but beneficial information. The two books together make an outstanding patient resource. Perhaps these two authors should consider a collaborative effort, since their works are so complimentary. |
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A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-06-04 00:00>
How Doctors Think is thoughtful reading for doctors and patience alike. Patients, by the very nature of their dis-eased state, at often ill-at-ease with doctors. Doctors, by the very nature of their training and their task, often put their task of diagnosis above their task of listening.
Jerome Groopman, a doctor himself, reminds doctors and patients alike that the best medicine is the medicine of mutual respect, communication, and cooperation. When patients honestly speak and doctors honestly listen, then accurate diagnosis is most likely. Medicine really is about people.
Well written and interspersed with copious narrative, this is not a stereotypical technical book about a technical field. Rather, How Doctors Think provides real life stories about life and death decision-making. |
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Dr Robert D. Hoffman, Family Physician, Israel
<2007-06-04 00:00>
A very thought provoking book about how doctors work and interact with patients. Although some of the situations are very familiar to physicians, the analysis of the doctor's workplace is interesting and may be very helpful for patients and family. We can all benefit from more involved patients, and it can be very important to empower patients to challenge the doctors' decisions. I always recommmend my patients ask other doctors "Do I have to take this medicine or do this test?" in order to allow the doctor to think again, and possibly to discuss the pros and cons with the patient. A very worthwhile read. |
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Cathy Harrington (MSL quote), USA
<2007-06-04 00:00>
This book is one that is hard to put down. It really makes you think about how physicians view their patients and what has become of the medical profession. If you find you are not getting the answers to your questions or are being overlooked, move on. Unfortunately, your records more on with you. What an awakening. |
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June Black (MSL quote), USA
<2007-06-04 00:00>
Excellent book. In-depth explanations on various cases on how a doctor comes to a diagnosis when the symptoms are vague. Good insight for the patient to understand the physician's viewpoint. |
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1 Total 1 pages 6 items |
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