Customer Reviews

The Scalpel's Edge: The Culture of Surgeons

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Last year I had major surgery (at least 4 different procedures done at once) by two surgeons. The outcome was successful, but I had many follow-up visits and, while I was recovering, a lot of time to ruminate. I began to wonder what made these two very different men (both the same age) tick. What it is like to cut into someone's body? How do they handle the stress, how do they make decisions? I began reading all the books I could find by and about surgeons. Surprisingly, there weren't too many; however, the ones I did find were mostly very good. My search progressed from profiles of surgeons, to the fictionalized experiences of one very literate surgeon (Richard Selzer), to books by and about neurosurgeons. All this reading made me hungry for more information, although I was beginning to get queasy about having gone too far -- getting too much behind-the-scenes information. But I was hooked and when I saw the description for Pearl Katz's book, I just couldn't resist. It is an anthropological study, written in academic style, with information quantified and categorized. She was given astonishing access to the world of the surgeons at a large university hospital in Canada, and the results of her study may have you shaking in your boots. She reports on the non-medical influences that affect their decisions about treatment of patients. In one instance, a surgeon refers a patient to one of his colleagues, who is not the best choice, but is a buddy of the surgeon and needs to pay the mortgage on his summer house. Another time, the surgeon does not tell the patient that chemotherapy or radiation may do just as well as surgery because he and his department will lose the income to another department. She reports on how surgeons avoid intimate or direct conversations with each other and their patients and how their egos affect decisions and protocols. (A surgeon declines to x-ray the duct after a gallbladder removal because he doesn't think any stones are in the duct, even though according to Katz, there is no way to make this determination without an x-ray.) This book is fascinating for those who really want to know what's going on behind the scenes. It's helpful to those who want to take an active part in their own or a family member's medical care, and don't mind asking hard questions. If you prefer not to know more than your doctor is willing to tell you, don't read this book.

After reading the reviews for this book, I eagerly purchased my copy. I am a general surgery resident and thus I thought I would find this book especially interesting. I did not. The author makes some interesting and valid observations, however I felt the book lacked any true analysis of what it really means to be a surgeon. If I were a medical student reading this I would steer clear of a career in surgery! Specifically I was annoyed by her contention that surgeons are merely clinicians and not true scientists as well as her insistence on referring to all surgeons by the male gender (a point she made early on). Clearly I am living proof of the contrary. In short, I was extremely disappointed and had a very difficult time even finishing this book.

...this book made me so excited that I had to write something. I had to read this book for a Health Care Sociology class and I ended up reading half of the book in one sitting even though I had other work to do. A lot of the information in this book is really shocking about surgeons and it has made me eager to volunteer in an OR so I can see any proof of this stuff for myself. I even got to learn about some types of common procedures surgeons do and it has definitely made me feel like I was observing these surgeons with the author.

I found myself being sucked into this book at times, and wanting to push it away at others. The material is interesting - I had never really thought of surgeons as having their own culture. The stories were interesting and sometimes shocking. But I feel like the writer dumbed things down a little too much. . .either that or she didn't have great writing skills. And she really added too much of her commentary. I was hoping for a neutral look - a simple report on the culture of surgeons - but she tried to get the reader to agree with her views far too often. It wouldn't hurt to read this book, but it wouldn't really be an enjoyable experience either.

Concise,well-written and highly readable, this book has rapidly become an underground classic for surgical residents. It addresses issues of vital concern to those contemplating surgery for themselves or their relatives.

I bought this book hoping to get a deep insight into what a person we call a "surgeon" is like. Instead, it was a poorly written term paper that tries to pound in the author's narrow views with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. The writing seriously reminded me of a high school paper, in the way that it presented its case and provided countless questionably relevant quotes to "support" it. Furthermore, the entire book consists of the author badgering the culture of surgeons, then "gracefully" acknowledging those same surgeons for their help ... somewhat in the manner that congressmen call each other "my esteemed colleague."

I understand the author's intent to point out flaws in the culture in order to further improvement, but I feel that her case is presented in a very black and white way. The reason I compare it to a high school paper is because high school writers frequently grab onto an idea, get all excited about having found something "wise" and "insightful" to say, and then proceed to beat it to death.

I have no stake in how surgeons are portrayed ... so I am speaking from an unbiased vantage point when I say that Katz way oversimplified a very complex culture, consisting of countless different personalities, in countless different sociological spheres (e.g., different wards, different hospitals, different types of hospitals).

Anyway, in the end, my biggest complaint is that it was boring boring boring.