Book Review

Up to 25 per cent of acute hospital inpatient beds could be lost as a result of social distancing measures, according to the IHCA.   It says urgent funding, development and implementation are needed to increase hospital capacity to meet Covid-19 and winter demands. IHCA President Donal O’Hanlon said: “We risk losing significant capacity as a result of…

The IMO will today warn the special Oireachtas committee on Covid-19 that the pandemic’s effect on healthcare will result in negative health outcomes unless immediate and sustained investment in building capacity is undertaken. The meeting is scheduled for midday.  Representatives from the IMO will warn that an investment programme is urgently needed to: Provide 5,000 additional public acute beds and at…

Title: Can We Be Happier? Evidence and Ethics Author: Richard Layard Publisher: Pelican (2020) Reviewer: Prof Brendan Kelly Can We Be Happier? Evidence and Ethics is the new book by Richard Layard, a labour economist who worked for most of his life on how to reduce unemployment and inequality. Most recently, Layard has become known…

Aleppo, Syria, 2013. Consultant surgeon Mr David Nott is in theatre suturing the pulmonary vein of a wounded patient when six armed men in black combat fatigues burst in: “They were obviously ISIS fighters, and the patient on the table was one of them… It was all I could do to keep my legs from…

Title: The Irrational Ape: Why Flawed Logic Puts Us All at Risk and How Critical Thinking Can Save the World Author: David Robert Grimes Publisher: Simon & Schuster (2019) Reviewer: Prof Brendan Kelly Every few years, a new book appears telling us that we need to think more clearly, more logically and more critically. The…

In an extract from his new book, Dr Stephen McWilliams argues that despite his reputation for arrogance and coldness, Baker Street’s famous fictional resident often displays empathy and warmth Sherlock Holmes is a firm favourite among aficionados of detective yarns. The obsessional sleuth with a penchant for cocaine and opiates was first introduced to readers…

Title Dear Life Author Dr Rachel Clarke Publisher Little Brown Reviewer George Winter It is Dr Rachel Clarke’s first hospice multidisciplinary team meeting. Under consideration is the challenge of how best to turn in bed a pain-wracked lady named Florence, in her late eighties and dying with an aggressive cancer. Nina, Florence’s nurse, proposes a…

Title The Body: A Guide for Occupants Author Bill Bryson Publisher Doubleday (2019) Reviewer Prof Brendan Kelly Every so often, a new book about the human body appears and, if well written, it can open up the wonders of human biology to a new generation of readers. This is a good thing: An appreciation of…

One of the under-recognised supports of our medical journey is wit, enlivening our encounters and reminding us not only of the wonder of practising as a doctor, but also of the ambiguities and limitations of our practice. Graphic medicine by physician artists has been one of the most notable channels for displaying this aspect of…