Clinical Problem-Solving contains detailed essay-like analyses of clinical decision-making and cases to test the readers’ own clinical problem-solving skills. First, Dr. Stephen Bent takes the reader through a logical chapter on the quantitative aspects of clinical decision-making: the numbers. In the following chapter by Dr. Gurpreet Dhaliwal, the question “How do doctors think?” is answered in a well-referenced essay reviewing literature in which physicians were the study subjects.
The remaining and majority of Clinical Problem-Solving is just that: clinical problem-solving. More than 20 sophisticated clinical vignettes geared at students interested in medicine and medicine residents create a mini-textbook for clinical diagnosis. Clinical Problem-Solving is well organized and can be used as a self-study tool or a reference for group teaching. Continuing the format of the “Clinical Problem-Solving” series, information about the actual patient is presented in bold followed by a response by an experienced clinician in regular type. Pertinent graphs and images are included to create a thorough display of data.
Though it may be difficult to teach clinical diagnosis through a book, The New England Journal of Medicine: Clinicial Problem-Solving creates a foundation from which educators and those interested in improving their skills and understanding of medical diagnosis can start teaching and learning.