The Secret Doctor

By: Dr Max Skittle

Narrated by: Kris Dyer

Length: 11 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

Welcome to the life of Dr Max Skittle. Therapist, relationship counsellor, social worker, friend, parent-figure - and, yes: doctor.

Join Max - and his patients - as he takes us on a rollercoaster journey through a year in the life of a doctor: from infected toenails, to wonky elbows, to erectile disfunction, to bed bugs; the happy couple expecting a surprise new baby; the teenage girl struggling with body image issues; the loving family grappling with grief, Max shows us all the highs and crushing lows that come with being a GP - and how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed all our lives forever.

This is what really goes on in your local doctor's surgery - spilt urine bottles, existential crises, emails back and forth with social services, utterly unexplainable health problems and appointments always running late - told by a man who, despite it all, really loves his job.

Previously published as The Secret GP.

©2020 Dr Max Skittle (P)2020 Bonnier Books UK

Super Fun Read

Delightfully fun read straight through. A no-nonsense approach/opinion/description of the "human condition " in most of it's shapes and forms. I giggled through most, roared laughing through bits and thoroughly enjoyed a down-to-earth summary of life in the UK medical system. As a retired emergency services worker I can appreciate some bits more than imaginable! Dr. Skittle has an irreverent approach to life at all points and the regularly inserted profanity that only makes his dry humor that much greater. Bravo!

Funny and entertaining book!

I enjoyed this book a lot. It is a light, funny, witty, and entertaining story.

Just didn’t and awful awful

I thought this would be a better collection of stories about a physician seeing patients in the trials and tribulations. All it is is just one guy complaining and complaining about stupid things. It’s in journal form so it’s even worse.

GLAD HE’s NOT MY PHYSICIAN

I just hope patients out there know that the majority of physicians are not like Max Skittle. Really.
I’m guessing Dr. Skittle was burned out, and had the opportunity to write a novel. He should have passed on writing the novel. But his other life changing decision was a good one. I honestly thought he was joking. I was unnerved, disheartened and disgusted by the theme of this novel: Sharing his patronizing and judgmental thoughts about his patients. How would you feel if your physician was comparing your obesity to the folds of dough from The Great British Bake Off? Or was praying they he didn’t have to go near her vagina, “WITH or without gloves.” He was disgusted by your urine or flaky skin and mocked patients who ask “of stupid questions.” He thought it was ingenious to pretend that he was putting a lot of serious thought into your issue by “chewing on the end of a pen” and looking deep in thought, just so you would think he was working hard to diagnose you! He even said to a patient, “it is my tremendous pleasure to help you”, and then say he then shared with the listener, “that’s a big lie.” Really? I kept waiting for some eye opening experience to occur, like Harrison Ford had in the film, “The Patient”. In the film, he is sort of like Max. But then he ends up in hospital snd experiences what it is to be like on the other side and walks away s better physician snd person. But I was 3/4 of the way through, and it still hadn’t happened. More insults about patients, such as the obese woman who is on or his “favorites”, saying, “I think she is hitting her arm fat and watching it giggle.
I had to stopped and decided I that the only time I would ever listen to this again is when I am training medical providers on what NOT to do when working with their patients. To me, there was a HUGE discrepancy between what he was saying, “I really do care for my patients”, and how he truly felt. “(I am so stupid to ask them how I can help.”
Dr Skittle, I hope you listens to your audiobook and then ask yourself, “what if I found out my wife’s physician was taking about her this way?
What would my patients say about me? and, “Why did I really leave medicine? Do we seem trustworthy, supportive and empathetic??
Huge ego, little self eflection.
The narrator was great. I wonder how he really felt about what he was reading.
There are MANY amazing, smart, empathetic, knowledgeable and trusting providers out there.
This just isn’t one of them.