This is another one of those books that I put on hold at the library on a whim because it looked interesting. I didn't realize that after it became available to check out from said library, I would have already have been rushed to the hospital in the middle of the night by my husband. This left me very nervous to even read the book because I was afraid of reading anything that resembled what happened to me and at the time I had NO idea why it happened. (My heart went into atrial fibrillation for the second time in 5 years and it is not to common for a young healthy person to experience that!) Of course my curiosity got the better of me and I slowly started reading it anyways. There were a few parts where I almost stopped because it was talking about a patient with heart problems. I was convinced that regardless of my age there was something wrong with my heart and reading anything to do with people in the ER with heart problems really made my anxiety fly sky high.I however, still kept reading and found it rather interesting. I knew of course that life in the ER is nothing like the TV shows but I never realized just how hectic it could be. I did find it frustrating at times though because Dr. Goldman would start talking about one patient then leave you hanging while he told stories about similar or related topics before going back to the original story at the end of the chapter. Although Dr. Goldman does talk in some medical terms and about certain medications that I have never heard of, he does give a good impression of what working in a ER is like. I know it's something I could never do and I commend anyone that does. I guess I can understand now sometimes when nurses or doctors come across as indifferent. It's probably either work fatigue or their only defense against getting too emotionally involved with each patience situation. I would imagine working the long hours in an ER, would be emotionally draining after awhile. (Also in case anyone is wondering after all the tests I have had done, my heart is totally healthy and they found nothing wrong with me. The specialist determined because of what I was doing both times it happened (chugging cold water and trying to get some burbs out) that I am one of the lucky few that people in this world that could experience atrial fibrillation due to either food, liquid, or gas disturbing my esophagus. Lucky me :(. ) I picked the book up on a whim after visiting a friend at Mt. Sinai and seeing it at the Indigo bookstore there. Goldman is just as comfortable with storytelling as he is in the ER, and it shows. I very much appreciated the small ways in which he explores the little flaws and secrets of the ER. Some of the descriptions of medical issues, while not exactly exhaustive, still turned my stomach a bit, so keep an eye out... but he generally keeps it to the human story rather than the organ one.I devoured this book over a few days, reading it constantly on transit. Definitely happy I picked it up.
What do You think about The Night Shift (2010)?
This was an easy read. Fun to read about the clinical side of hospital work.
—jessiebakitunda
Very interesting and well written. I feel the author was very open.
—aban
The author is pretty dorky, but I love that it is set in my city.
—marywin
