About the Book Preface Table of Contents Sample Mistake What others are saying...

PREFACE

Your surgery rotation promises to be one of the most challenging rotations you will take during your clinical years of medical school. Over a two or three-month period, you will be expected to master a tremendous amount of information and learn how to diagnose and manage patients with surgical disease. To reach these goals, you will have a plethora of books from which to choose.

In writing this book, our goal was not to duplicate the efforts of other authors, who have written books focusing on the diagnosis and management of patients with surgical disease. Instead, our aim is to provide you with the detailed knowledge you need to function at an intern level. To function at an intern level, you not only need to know about your patient's illness but you also need to know how to perform the tasks involved in the care of your patient. In other words, you need to know how to preround, present patients during work rounds, write surgical notes, handle yourself in the operating room, interact with the attending physician, and fulfill your responsibilities on call. This book will give you explicit instructions on how to perform these tasks well - not at a student level but at an intern level.

We strive to help you reach this level sooner rather than later by informing you of the major mistakes that students make during the clerkhsip. By the end of the rotation, most students learn to avoid these mistakes through a process of trial and error. Wouldn't it be better, though, if you could avoid these mistakes altogether? With this book, you can and armed with this knowledge, you will speed up your learning curve, reduce your anxiety level, and quickly reach a comfort level that allows you to do your best work. We wish you the best during the surgery clerkship and hope that this book becomes your companion, providing you with the tools needed to tackle the challenges of this rotation.

- Samir Desai, MD