Manual of Common Bedside Surgical Procedures: By the Halstead Residents of the Johns Hopkins Hospital

Before starting my ophthalmology residency, I did my internship at a place where the interns on call were expected to just handle things. We covered the floor, the ICU's, the whole hospital. This book was an excellent resource to have available while on call and definitely made me feel a lot more comfortable so that I could refresh my memory before procedures. The book contains both descriptions and illustrations on how to perform a wide variety of procedures ranging from intubation to placing a variety of catheters and lines, Gi tubes, placing chest tubes, tapping joints, repairing certain types of lacerations, and performing a few specifc nerve blocks, lumbar punctures.etc. The book is just slightly too big to carry around in your lab coat, so I just kept it in my call bag. The Ferri book and the "Critical Care Medicine" pocket-book in the Current Clinical Strategies series were what I used while on call along with this procedure book

For a book that conspicuously describes itself as a "pocket sized manual", the Manual of Common Bedside Surgical Procedures is curiously large. Measuring 6 inches in width from spiral binding to cover edge, the manual is the exact same dimensions as the pockets of 3 of my lab coats (all by different manufacturers). Thus, it is impossible to put this book in the pocket of a size 38 lab coat. Nonetheless, it is the only major complaint this reviewer has about this book.Written by the Halsted Residents at Johns Hopkins Hospital, the book covers most of the common bedside procedures any surgical, IM or ER resident may encounter. Many handbooks cover a few of these topics (ie, nasogastric intubation, urinary catheterization,sutures, etc.) but not nearly in depth as does Chen's work. From Airway Management,through vascular access procedures, lumbar punctures, splinting to needle biopsies and joint injections the book covers everything well. Each procedure includes:-indications for the procedure -contraindications -anesthesia needed (if any) -equipment ( I LOVE having a "shopping list" handy when I'm doing procedures) -patient positioning -step by step technique instructions -complications and management after the procedureSeveral of the procedures also have graphics to aid in the positioning of the device,incision site,or relevant anatomy.The book does provide a cautionary warning in the Preface that experience and knowledge cannot be replaced by simply following directions in a book. Despite this statement, I was suprised that some of more highly specialized procedures did not contain enough information about the difficulty or the suitability for a house officer. For example, when the vermillion border of the lip is disrupted, a 1 mm error in matching up the edges is visible to the naked eye. Because of this and the potential for scarring on the face, most surgical residents I know prefer to leave such procedures to Plastic Surgeons and/or their residents. It would perhaps be prudent for some of the more specialized and/or potentially troublesome procedures to include mention of the pitfalls and the possible need for consultation.All in all, the book is a valuable resource for the fresh resident and I would recommend it to anyone doing a surgical, medicine, or emergency medicine residency as an asset to their book collection.