Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #121839 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-31
• Binding: Hardcover
• 192 pages

Sunday Times
`I found I had been gripping the book so hard that my fingers
hurt... it calls to mind one of the great classics of medical literature,
Mikhail Bulgakov's A Country Doctor's Notebook. Few modern authors can
stand that comparison, but Gawande can.'

Synopsis
The struggle to perform well is universal, but nowhere is this drive to do better more important than in medicine. In his new book, Atul Gawande explores grippingly how doctors strive to close the gap between best intentions and best performance in the face of obstacles that sometimes seem insurmountable. His vivid stories take us to battlefield surgical tents in Iraq, to a polio outbreak in India, and to malpractice courtrooms around the country. He discusses the ethical dilemmas of doctors' participation in lethal injections, examines the influence of money on modern medicine, and recounts the astoundingly contentious history of hand-washing. And he gives a brutally honest insight into life as a practising surgeon. Unflinching but compassionate, Gawande's investigation into medical professionals and their progression from good to great provides a detailed blueprint for success that can be used by people in every area of human endeavour.