Complications

A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science

By: Atul Gawande

Narrated by: William David Griffith

Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

Sometimes in medicine the only way to know what is truly going on in a patient is to operate, to look inside with one's own eyes. This book is exploratory surgery on medicine itself, laying bare a science not in its idealized form but as it actually is - complicated, perplexing, and profoundly human.

Atul Gawande offers an unflinching view from the scalpel's edge, where science is ambiguous, information is limited, the stakes are high, yet decisions must be made. In dramatic and revealing stories of patients and doctors, he explores how deadly mistakes occur, why good surgeons go bad. He shows what happens when medicine comes up against the inexplicable: an architect with incapacitating back pain for which there is no physical cause; a young woman with nausea that won't go away; a television newscaster whose blushing is so severe that she cannot do her job. Gawande also ponders the human factor that makes saving lives possible.

At once tough-minded and humane, Complications is a new kind of medical writing, nuanced and lucid, unafraid to confront the conflicts and uncertainties that lie at the heart of modern medicine, yet always alive to the possibilities of wisdom in this extraordinary endeavor.

©2002 Atul Gawande (P)2003 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

"Gawande's sharp eye, crisp prose, and insightful understanding make his book as enjoyable as it is edifying." (Los Angeles Times)

"These exquisitely crafted essays, in which medical subjects segue into explorations of much larger themes, place Gawande among the best in the field." (Publishers Weekly)

"Diagnosis: riveting." (Time)

good book buy

The guy skipped like 3 chapters which was really frustrating & on top of not reading some chapters the one he did read ? some paragraphs got skipped it got really annoying ; overall i liked the book

Good reflections, thoughtful

Would you consider the audio edition of Complications to be better than the print version?

Haven't read print version.

Any additional comments?

This was a thoughtful book about risk, patient choice, and the practice of medicine. I found both the first and last 3rds of the book very good, while there was a section in the middle that was less interesting for me. Overall a v. good listen.

Intriguing

A very insightful view from the perspective of a surgeon. The real-life stories were interesting, and he makes some good points about inherent problems in the medical field.

Well told story, a must read!

Complications is a story for anyone who works with doctors or had regular dealings with them. Gawande weaves story is together to create a picture of doctors that is interesting as it proves that they are only human. I will be listening to it again.

Good read!

The content is great and the reading was good too. The only thing that bothered me was the music at the beginning and end of each chapter. It was distracting and didn't add anything to the reading.

Great book, terrible random elevator music

Who on Earth thinks it's a good idea to insert random snippets of elevator / hold music throughout an audiobook?! Otherwise a great book with entertaining anecdotes.

Absorbing read

The personable stories are gold for anyone and everyone. Especially students in or planning to enter medicine, the details are so exciting.

Controlling the Chaos

Wonderfully talented writer who captures the essence of the medical experience. I felt like I was an intern again, once again putting in my first central line. I had flashbacks of various complications that I had seen in my training. Both those complications that taught me to be a better physician, and those that were tragic leaving emotional scars.

The first part of the book where he goes into detail about how malpractice affects physicians and is ineffectual in improving health care should be mandatory reading for all physicians. We will all be sued. It is not a mater of if, but when. Even the most trivial lawsuit has a significant emotional effect on the physician. Somehow the tremendous personal effect of a lawsuit upon a physician is lost among the general population.

Another wonderful part of the book is the extended follow up that he has with some of the surgical patients.

My only regret was that this was an abridged version. Still I give it 5 stars.

I anxiously await the authors next book "Better" that comes out this spring. For more from this author you should read the commencement speech he gave at Harvard Medical School's graduation 2005.

Do you hate your doctor?

Why? Have you ever asked yourself why your doctor doesn't solve all your medical problems?
This book provides the necessary answers and insights into medical school, residency, fellowship, and medical practice.
Doctors as a whole are very good at what hey do, the bad ones are the ones we read about in the news, not the good ones.

Annoying music but good story

This book analyzes a few aspects of medicine like learning pain decision making malpractice etc. a very in interesting inside look and definitely worth a read unfortunately there's some very annoying music that just sort of creeps in every once in a while for no apparent reason. The reader is decent and outside of that it's not to annoy.ing