A Not Entirely Benign Procedure: Four Years as a Medical Student by Perri Klass

Synopsis: Acclaimed pediatrician, journalist, and novelist Perri Klass offers a provocative look at the ups and downs of medical school from those first exams to the day she became a doctor. In a direct, candid style, Klass shares what it is like to be a first-time mother while attending med school; the unique lingo of the med student; how to deal with every bodily fluid imaginable; and the humor and heartbreak of working with patients. With this collection of essays, Klass established herself as a go-to voice for a generation of med students and doctors, with her frank and witty perspective. Klass also brings a proven ability to make the medical world accessible to the lay reader, through her extensive literary and journalistic experience.

Published: April 1987 | ISBN: 978-0452272583

Author’s Homepage: http://www.perriklass.com
Author’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/perriklass

I read all three in medical school. While I still feel that pediatrics is more similar to veterinary medicine than to adult medicine (the patients can’t tell you what is wrong with them and you have to deal with their sometimes overprotective and neurotic “owners”), these books are a fascinating glimpse into the training of a pediatrician – starting from Klass’ medical school training at Harvard Medical School and continuing through her early career. She strongly inspired me to write my own memoir about my forensic training called Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies and the Making of a Medical Examiner. – From 10 Great Books on Medicine

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