Books to read

Hi!

I am looking for books recommendations for someone who wants to do medicine in university. I want a book with depth /detail which I can later talk about in university interviews ( particularly RG universities such as oxbridge and imperial ) I don’t want overly difficult books from 100s of years ago which are above my age range (16)and written by idk Andreas Vesalius lol but still I want something a bit detailed and also fun to read. I may enjoy something with a discussion of medical ethics and ethical dilemmas in medicine and also the human anatomy and surgery related topics.

Thanks

Reply 1

ErasistratusV

Ok, so a lot of these books you are potentially describing will be way outside your current understanding. This doesn't reflect on you negatively in any way: a lot of them may contain content which is likely outside my current understanding: that's the nature of medical science. But that's ok.

The first important factoid is that you have the interest in this material and believe me that is more than enough as a first starting point. If you want a case study for that then I am perhaps a good example of this myself: when I was way back in pre-GCSE times I would often read a now-aged copy of Human physiology by Vander, Sherman and Luciano. I would read some of this book before I fell asleep and I did this most nights. I still have that same book today. Little did I know some years later I would be able to fully unlock and understand the medical secrets contained within it.

Anyway, the point I am making is that everyone more or less starts their medical journey with not a lot of baseline knowledge. Sure, you might get some human biology at GCSE or A level, but in reality that isn't very much compared with what you will have gained by the end of year 2 in medicine.

So it's ok to not fully understand a lot of the content you might encounter in the list of books I am going to give you. What matters is that you will keep your interest keen and it might be a good way of motivating yourself through the next few years as you strive to get on the course. I still have an anatomy book on my desk at all times whilst studying and I read glimpse into it during pauses or breaks. It's a good way of relaxing your mind for a moment and it's still sort of semi 'on-topic' and reminds me of any longer term goal I might have in mind. You can do the same as you drag yourself through A levels or whatever your next challenge is.

The downside of all this is that is takes time and the biggest downside of this is the cost. You will find medical textbooks are hugely expensive for the later editions but the good news is that they tend to 'age' rapidly as new volumes are published so you can often buy older editions second hand for not a lot of money.

For anatomy: Gray's anatomy for students, Moore's clinically orientated anatomy. Gray's anatomy the real deal you may be able to buy an older copy of but it is way outside the level of understanding of any first year medical student. If you want textbooks with specimen images then you need Rohen's photographic atlas of anatomy, or Human anatomy by Gosling et al.
For physiology: Vander's Human Physiology by Vander, Sherman and Luciano, or even better, Guyton and Hall's medical physiology
For histology (the bane of many a medical student but you really do gotta understand things at the level of the cell): Wheater's functional histology

A cheaper option: all-in-one anatomy and physiology book which is aimed not at medical students but people in paramedic science, nursing etc is Ross and Wilson's anatomy and physiology in health and illness but it's not quite detailed enough for a medic in my view.

In terms of ethics and other specifics, there is a book called medical interviews which is actually aimed at people applying to CST and the like which contains some interesting ethical situations.

There are other sources of information on ethics and the sociology of medicine but I can't think of them right now.

(edited 8 months ago)

Reply 2

mass63

I strongly suggest you watch on bbc1 iplayer the series called " surgeons ,edge of life." I watched all of it and can tell you that you will learn a lot about being a doctor. You will see the levels of competence, the high level of communication, stamina, determination, teamwork , empathy, and compassion towards the patients and even their families. If you watch with interest and connect with each and every episode, you will, in my view, learn a lot about real life at NHS . You will see complex operations such as brain tumers removal to complex spin operations and various heart operations . They require all the qualities i mentioned above at the operations theatre. As for the books, my daughter read a book called This is going to hurt by adam Kay, and that was many years ago.

Reply 3

exorbitant-laten

This is going to hurt, Adam Kay - funny account of working as an NHS junior doctor (it's also been adapted into a depressing BBC series)
You don't have to be mad to work here, Benji Waterhouse (account by an NHS psychiatrist. funny book which covers the ups and downs of working for NHS mental health service)
Spike, Jeremy Farrar (Farrar was head of the Wellcome trust when the covid pandemic hit - covers the story of healthcare professionals as the pandemic unfolded. SUCH a good book)
Trust me I'm a junior doctor, Max Pemberton (like a sibling of this is going to hurt)
When breath becomes air, Paul Kalanithi (memoir of a surgeon who is diagnosed with cancer himself)
The emperor of all maladies, Siddhartha Mukherjee (a biography of cancer - traces the disease and its treatments through history)
Breathtaking, Rachel Clark (story of an NHS palliative care doctor during the covid pandemic)

I've read all of these and they're all nice reads - nothing too complex but also very relevant and could definitely be spoken about in PS/interviews. Some of them are quite hard hitting (have a box of tissues prepared for when breath becomes air).

Also, less obviously medical, but also very relevant:
Sapiens or Homo Deus (I actually prefer Homo Deus, feels more relevant), Yuval Noah Hararri
The man who mistook his wife for a hat, Oliver Sacks (case histories of patients with various neurological disorders)
B*tch, Lucy Cooke (biology behind the patriarchy and healthcare gap between males and females)
The book of humans, Adam Rutherford
Missing microbes, Martin Blaser (overuse of antibiotics)
The Selfish Gene, Dawkins
Sex Matters, Alyson Mcgregor (health inequality again)

Reply 4

exorbitant-laten

Also, medical dramas like Greys Anatomy can be GENUINELY useful (I know it sounds silly). Loads of the cases in Greys are based off real life surgical cases. I did a mock interview once where they asked me a question and I used knowledge that I'd gained from an episode of Greys Anatomy to answer lol.

BBC casualty can be a good representation of the NHS sometimes

Other medical dramas like the good doctor and chicago med can also cover real life cases and knowledge

Also, check out documentaries (and documentary series) - they can be an easier way of getting information without having to commit to a book. If you have spare time you could also do a MOOC (look on the website FutureLearn) - these are really good to talk about in personal statements!

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