Emergency Medicine Pearls

This is an awesome book. Everyone doing an EM rotation or interested in EM residency needs to buy this book and memorize it from front to back. I wanted to do well on my EM rotation. When I started, they gave me Tintanelli and said read it (yup in 4 weeks!) So I bought the Tintanelli study, and that was too big, and then I bought the even smaller tintanelli pocket, that that was too big and then I bought NMS emergency medicine and that was too dry and not practical. Then, I stumbled across this book. I was half way through the rotation, had two weeks with a busy work schedule and I simply read this book, made flashcards on all of it, memorized them and aced the exam. My conclusion is that as a student or starting out, you have to prioritize your time. Your choice is to know alot about one or two things (pick up tintannelli) or you can know a good, working, basic level about everything, (do what I did and memorize this book). It doesn't stop you from also reading Tintannelli on subjects you are particularly interested in, or Rosen's 5 minute when you are working, or anything else for that matter, but to not read and memorize this book is doing yourself a disservice if EM is your interest and you are just starting out because it covers everything you need to know in a readable, practical way. Good luck.

This is essential reading for fourth year medical students and for interns. The book covers some of the basics in Emergency Medicine, things that you'd write down when your senior decides to teach. You can read it in one or two sittings before you start and keep it in your pocket for quick reference. The book is not comprehensive, but what do you want for a pocket primer (it actually fits in your pocket). I highly recommend it.

Although this book appears geared toward medical professionals, as a layperson, I found it fascinating and very informative. People from physicians to "ER" fans should find it interesting and valuable. For example, a person suffering from back pain can turn to the chapter on that topic and be more informed when talking with her doctor.