Reviews tagging 'Child death'

This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor by Adam Kay

162 reviews

izzyvioletgrace's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

This book is a detailed insight into the life of a doctor. Informative and funny, yet shows the inhumane pressure doctors are put under. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gore, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Abortion, Blood, and Medical content

Moderate: Terminal illness

Minor: Mental illness, Rape, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Eating disorder, and Emotional abuse

bookgraham's review

challenging funny informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Miscarriage, Child death, Medical trauma, Abortion, Infertility, and Medical content

Minor: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Gore, Classism, Antisemitism, Excrement, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Racism, Alcohol, Drug use, and Death

eloiseug's review against another edition

emotional funny informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

This book was simply incredible. The writing is funny, witty and sarcastic. The book gives you a real sense of all of the positives and negatives of being a junior doctor, along with a sense that you are really getting to know Adam as he was when he was practicing. Kay's writing is a triumph, and one of the best things I have ever had the privilege to read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Infertility, Medical trauma, Blood, Death, Mental illness, Child death, Medical content, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, and Cancer

Moderate: Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Addiction, and Alcohol

Minor: Religious bigotry and Abortion

rebeccaldixon13's review against another edition

emotional funny informative medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Miscarriage, Grief, Child death, Pregnancy, Blood, Death, and Abortion

saviross's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad medium-paced

3.0

Very interesting to hear about these experiences working across various hospitals. At times, I honestly felt happy Adam is no longer working as a doctor, as sometimes his comments about patients were jarring and insensitive. I understand though that it is a very challenging job and, at the same time, Adam told many stories that made his care for patients very clear. I did enjoy Adam's writing though, and his ability to be humorous during times of stress was amazing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Fatphobia, and Grief

rubyrosereads_'s review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative fast-paced

5.0

“So I told them the truth: the hours are terrible, the pay is terrible, the conditions are terrible, you’re underappreciated, unsupported, disrespected and frequently physically endangered. But there’s no better job in the world.” 

Wow, what a phenomenal memoir. This is Adam Kay’s collection of diary entries from his years working as an obstetrician and gynaecologist in the severely underfunded and underresourced NHS. 

“The money is utterly out of step with the level of responsibility you have - literally life and death decisions”

For something that covers some severely dark experiences in the workplace, it was hilarious and entertaining. Adam Kay’s humour is on every page and I found myself laughing out loud every time I picked this up. The footnotes explaining the terminology and procedures were really helpful for someone from a non health background. 

Another stark reminder of the conditions and abuse that healthcare workers put up with yet continue to show up to their job. My partner is a paramedic and I have so much respect for the tireless work he does, often working long shifts without meal breaks and then ending up on overtime. 

“You work yourself to exhaustion, pushing yourself beyond what could be reasonably expected of you, and end up constantly feeling like you don’t know what you’re doing.”

If you like dark humour and are intrigued by the inner workings of healthcare, give this one a read. I also recommend the dramatised tv series on Stan. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Medical content, and Medical trauma

bnelson13's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny informative lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

5.0

Another book, that if I could give it more than 5 stars I would! Mostly funny, slightly gross, this book is comprised of diary enteries from Dr. Adam Kay's time in Obgyn in various hospitals throughout the UK working for the NHS from 2004-2010. Certain terminology that may be lesser known is described in helpful footnotes throughout the entire book. 

Kay writes how difficult it is working in a system that doesn't quite support doctors, midwives, nurses and other hospital staff, and the impacts on their personal lives that also suffer. Kay has since left the healthcare industry but wrote this novel in solidarity, as an insight into hospital life for the general population after the government started to attack the NHS and saying that doctors are only in it for the money in 2016. 

A very insightful read, if you thought working in a hospital was already difficult, it's actually 10x worse than what you had thought. As it is, now in 2023, and with Covid still running rampant, it's clear that a lot of healthcare systems are crumbling due to lack of staffing, lack of care for staff, and governments out to make as many monetary cutbacks as they possibly can. I think we're on a slippery slope with the healthcare system now, and this book is proof that things need to change. Very eye opening. Well worth the read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content and Blood

Moderate: Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Abortion, Death, Vomit, Child death, and Infertility

Minor: Cancer, Excrement, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Drug use, Grief, and Alcoholism

aliced's review against another edition

dark informative medium-paced

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Fatphobia, Death, Child death, Blood, and Medical content

mel_s_bookshelf's review against another edition

emotional funny informative fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Medical content, Miscarriage, Death, and Child death

Moderate: Infertility

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

ameliaj_adams's review against another edition

emotional funny informative sad fast-paced

3.5

I’m happy I finally got round to reading this! It was really interesting to learn more about what doctors go through on a daily basis, and the book presented some, at times quite dark, themes in a funny and lighthearted way that was still accessible to people who have no background in medicine. I don’t normally read a lot of non fiction, but I would definitely recommend this to everyone! A quick and fun, yet poignant read that has given me a newfound respect for NHS staff.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content and Blood

Moderate: Child death, Miscarriage, Infertility, and Death