Clinician's Guide to Medical Writing (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Does being a clinician make you or me a capable medical writer?..." (more)
Key Phrases: writing review articles, medical writing, target journal, New York, New England Journal of Medicine, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews:

"A book for clinicians who want to start writing. … Every type of article that could fall within the scope … is covered. ... The book is easy and entertaining to read. … He has brightened what could otherwise be a dry subject … . If you need that extra push to start to write reading Taylor’s book is a good place to begin. … This guide covers wider aspects of medical writing and gives practical tips missing from other medical writing guides … ." (Elise Langdon-Neuner, The Journal of Men’s Health, Vol. 2(2), June, 2005)

"Might be described as a little gem, sparkling with advice, hints, and help, pushing and prodding the prospective but fearful (or lazy) writer to produce work that reveals some genius, knowledge, or talent. ... discusses all aspects of medical writing … . a road map to writing success. … a jewel, deserving consideration by every medical practitioner, both the academic, who must publish, and the nonacademic, who might discover the fun of writing and the pride of seeing his or her work published." (Alexander W. Gotta, Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 293(9), March, 2005)

 

Product Description

This book is for any clinician who wants to write. It is for the physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner who sees patients and also wants to contribute to the medical literature. It is for the assistant professor aspiring to promotion and the clinician in private practice seeking the personal enrichment that writing can bring. Loaded with practical advice and real-world examples, this text will benefit readers who are new to medical writing and those who have authored a few articles or chapters and want to improve their abilities.

Readers relate to this book because it is written by someone who has been in their shoes. Dr. Robert B. Taylor is a distinguished leader in the field of family medicine and is the editor of Springer-Verlag's best-selling books, Family Medicine, 6/e, and Fundamentals of Family Medicine, 3/e. Unlike the authors of many other writing books who have little experience outside of academia or publishing, writing is Dr. Taylor's avocation instead of the focus of his career. Dr. Taylor brings more than 14 years in private practice and 26 years in academic medicine. He has written every type of document covered in this text: review articles, editorials, case reports, letters to the editor, book reviews, book chapters, reference books, research protocols, grant proposals, and clinical study reports.

Most of Dr. Taylor's works have been published, but not all. In the process of producing his impressive curriculum vitae, Dr. Taylor has made all of the errors that frustrate fellow clinician-writers. Over the years, he has jumbled spelling, mixed metaphors, gotten lost in his own outline, written on unimportant topics, and submitted to inappropriate journals. But along the way, he has successfully published 18 medical books and several hundred papers. Dr. Taylor wrote this book to share what he has learned-what works and what doesn't in medical writing.

The purpose of this book is to show clinicians how to translate observations and ideas from their practices into written form and eventually into print. To achieve this, Dr. Taylor highlights four goals for the clinician-writer. Clinicians seeking publication must:

Understand more about the art of medical writing, including motivation, conceptualization, mechanics, and frustrations.

Discover how to write for the different models found in the medical literature, including review articles, case reports, editorials, research papers, book chapters, and more.

Learn how to get a manuscript published.

Recognize that writing can be fun.

The book's twelve chapters begin by discussing basic concepts in medical writing and fundamental skills before outlining models ranging from the review article to the grant proposal. Throughout, Dr. Taylor attempts to follow the time-honored principle of supporting theory with examples, some from actual published materials and some created to help the reader understand key principles.

Product Details

• Paperback: 266 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (October 28, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0387222499
• ISBN-13: 978-0387222493
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 4.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #302,955 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, must read!!, February 17, 2007

By	Gaurav Arora "Liver Guru" (California) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you are a clinician and want to write articles for journals but don't have a clue as to how to start, your quest for guidance stops here! Reading this book is like someone sitting beside you and gently telling you what to do next. It contains chapters on writing all different kinds of articles: reporting original research, systematic reviews, clinical reviews, case reports, etc. Also, it goes into writing style and mistakes to avoid. Definitely a must read for the newcomer to medical writing!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, must have for researcher clinicians, September 12, 2009

By	Eman AlDuhaiby - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I found this book very helpful and fun to read. It gives you a structured approach to medical writing and includes very useful tips. It is a must have for rsidents and interns who are involved in research projects and expected to write up or at least participate in writing a study manuscript. This book gives you a short cut over the time and effort you may spend until you learn some basic writing skills. I highly recommend it.