How Doctors Think: Clinical Judgment and the Practice of Medicine

by Kathryn Montgomery

Book Overview

How Doctors Think defines the nature and importance of clinical judgment. Although physicians make use of science, this book argues that medicine is not itself a science but rather an interpretive practice that relies on clinical reasoning. A physician looks at the patient's history along
with the presenting physical signs and symptoms and juxtaposes these with clinical experience and empirical studies to construct a tentative account of the illness...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195187121
• ISBN13: 9780195187120
• Release Date: November 2005
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 2.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.1" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Worth reading carefully

This is an incisive, and personal, analysis of how physicians think. It analyzes the foundations and processes behind physician's decision making, and their relationship to the patient. It also looks at some of the myths that add to the illusions that physicians sometimes project, both to bolster their persona as well as to hide the uncertainty that is behind many of their decisions. The writer is not a physician, which serves to give the book greater credibility, and is illustrated by her own anxiety regarding her daughter's cancer at an unusual age. As a physician, I found myself agreeing with most of her insights. Her analysis of the seating patterns and hierarchy in medical conferences is hilarious and accurate. Although she looked at a department of medicine, I think it holds true for mos specialties. This book is not an easy read, and it can be fairly slow going because of the academic vocabulary and the sometimes obscure references to philosophy, science and literature. But it is worth reading. If you have been a patient, you may gain insight into your physician's decisions. If you are a physician, you may end up realizing you are not who you thought you were.

Fantastic and challenging

This is a fantastic book -- it is much more advanced than Groopman's book, and is probably aimed at a different audience. Groopman addresses the layperson, while Montogomery addresses issues and ideas that the average reader would have trouble with. She is a great writer, though, and this is well worth your time.

Brilliant

I was thrilled when I first began reading How Doctors Think, and my feelings did not change when I finally finished the last page of the book. In honest,lyrical prose, Kathryn Montgomery eloquently articulates the complicated tapestry of the clinical decision-making process physicians often encounter in the face of clinical uncertainties and probabilistic medicine. Kudos to a beautifully structured deconstruction of the culture of medicine and medical training! I highly recommend this book to those involved in medical education curricular development. For those who are already medical students, residents, fellows, and attending physicians, I would suggest this as a must-read book on your reading list.

A Masterpiece!!!!

K Montgomery's book is the culmination of many years of working with physicians trying to dissect their way of reaching a complex diagnosis. She has an exceptional hability to put in words what takes 20 years of medical practice. Her concept of medicine not as science but a progressive growth based on experience ( memory of previous encounters with thousands of patients) and...science + new developments is simply revolutionary. Practical reasoning is the essence of how doctors think in the practice of medicine!!!!! This is one of the best books I ever read. I recommend HIGHLY Daniel Sette Camara, MD,FACP,FACG, FASGE

How Doctors Think

The best overview of physician thought processes I have read. Well written;thorough; should help non-medical persons understand the challenges physicians face in the diagnostic process and is an excellent guide for physicians who wish to organize and improve there clinical judgment. An MD