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Canadian Family Physician•Le Médecin de famille canadien Vol 55: noVember • noVembre 2009I only dress the wounds
AUTHOR Ted Merrill
PUBLISHER Homeostasis Press, 315 SW Brent Dr, John Day, OR 97845, USA WEBSITE www.homeostasispress.com PUBLISHED 2005/292 pp/$24.95
OVERALL RATING Excellent STRENGTHS Strong narrative style WEAKNESSES Not chronological AUDIENCE Family physicians, emergency physicians, and their families
I
n his very readable memoirs, Dr Ted Merrill takes us on a wonder- ful journey through his career in medicine—from his 1948 gradua- tion from medical school at Columbia University in New York City to his eventual retirement in Oregon after 50 remarkable years of practice.During this period in medicine, we witness first-hand the birth of fam- ily medicine as an academic disci- pline and the evolution of emergency medicine practice, as it changed from bedside housecalls to the modern emergency medical services of today.
Dr Merrill shares a series of sto- ries that capture various themes of medical practice, such as the com- plexities of consent and the impor- tance of kindness and respect toward patients and their families.
He emphasizes that a sound knowl- edge of anatomy and physiology, as well as excellent communication skills, is fundamental to the prac- tice of medicine. He uses insight and humour to describe the effects of the development of interprofes- sional teams and risk management on medical practice.
With all the complexities of mod- ern care and health systems, Dr Merrill reminds us about humility, mindful- ness, and the importance of the gen- eralist physician. Although he has retired from practice, Dr Merrill states there is still fun in practising medicine,
“even if you have to poke around to find it.” Good advice for us all.
—Doug Sinclair MD CCFP(EM) Dr Sinclair is Chief of Emergency Medicine at the IWK Health Centre based in Halifax, NS, and Associate Dean of Continuing Medical Education at Dalhousie University in Halifax.
