Something for the Pain: One Doctor's Account of Life and Death in the ER

I picked up this book as an ER physician's wife who is in a completely different line of work. It was great to see another person's perspective of life in the ER to get a better idea of what the work entails. The book was incredibly informative as well as witty, humorous, lighthearted and heartbreaking all at the same time. The book does an excellent job of taking us through the experiences of an ER doctor (including flashbacks of the medical training) by explaining procedures, specific terms and etiquette, the hospital system, etc, while the whole time remaining accessible to readers not in the field. This is a great book for someone who is not in the medical field who would like to understand what doctors go through (and why the long wait in the ER), the emotions and decisions they wrestle with, and the juggling of work and family life. I would give this book my highest recommendation.

Paul Austin's "Something for the Pain" is a poignant and candid account of the author's thirteen grueling years as an emergency room physician. Some might consider this to be one of the worst jobs in medicine. ER docs put in long hours, endure erratic sleeping and eating patterns, suffer disruptions in their personal lives, make life or death decisions quickly, and have very little opportunity to follow up on individual patients. Yet, for Paul Austin, becoming an ER doc was a no-brainer. He enjoys the adrenaline fueled atmosphere of the emergency room, the ability to employ his considerable skills to diagnose and treat people from all walks of life with a wide variety of complaints, and the chance to work with a team of close-knit colleagues. "Night is the time when lucky people get to sleep." For him, night and day became interchangeable, increasing the likelihood that he would miss vital clues and make errors in judgment. He prayed that he would "make it to daylight without hurting someone." The author gives us valuable insight into how his irregular schedule affected his family. We get to know his supportive wife, Sally, and his children, one of whom has Down syndrome. Austin's medical anecdotes are a familiar list of the wide variety of mishaps and illnesses that can befall a human being: a woman with recurring headaches could have a potentially fatal condition; a violent drunk threatens his doctors and nurses and refuses to participate in his care; a pregnant teenager appears to be on the verge of miscarrying; a man comes in experiencing chest pains, but it is unclear whether or not he should be admitted. Fortunately, there are many routine cases that are easy to treat, such as a broken arm or an ear infection. Austin relishes the challenge of bringing "order to a chaotic tangle of medical and social imperatives." He must work rapidly and efficiently in order to keep the ER running smoothly. The downside of Austin's career is that its demanding pace and unrelenting pressure can lead to cynicism, loss of empathy, and in the worst case scenario, emotional meltdowns. The author's fluid and engaging writing style draws us in as he candidly describes the speed bumps that threatened to derail his career and hurt his marriage. We learn about his successes and failures, his fears and resentments, and his determination to become a psychologically healthier and more fulfilled person. Dr. Austin is justifiably gratified that he has been privileged to "dip into people's lives for brief but important slivers of time." Not only has he provided his patients with "something for the pain," but he has learned to deal with the fatigue and anguish that all emergency room physicians inevitably experience. Readers who like realistic narratives about the practice of medicine will find this book thoroughly absorbing.

I enjoyed Something for the Pain from start to finish, and I learned something about life in the ER room, as well as something about how that life impacts the people who attend to our medical emergencies. As hard as it is for individual families to deal with medical crisis, I saw how a daily slate of such things could tax both the professional and private life of the doctors who dedicate their careers to helping save lives. Dr. Austin weaves case stories with incidents from his family life, drawing from his experience as a student and doctor, and ultimately provides a generous and honest account of the trials and triumphs he's faced over the years he's dedicated to medicine. Reading his work, one can easily imagine the fast-paced ER; the patients, nurses and doctors inside it; as well as how easily we could ourselves lie on one of those beds, and how we rely on the compassion and competence of our doctors.

This book was refreshing. Dr Austin allows the reader to see what it is really like for a person who works with life and death every day. I was thrilled that this was not just another medical book, but one about a real person and the joys and struggles he faced. Anyone who has ever worked in an ED will be able to relate to the frustration and emotional feelings he dealt with. This book made me laugh but it also brought me to the brink of tears. It was a great read and I am recommending it to all my friends, especially the ones who don't work in health care. I certainly hope he has another book in him!!

As a former ER doc, one of the things that drives me insane is reading books where the physicians are so compassionate, I wouldn't recognize them among the dozens (hundreds?) of docs I've worked with over the years. Sure, we're all nice to little old ladies from nice families but it's the six sigma guy who can be that way with the drug addict in the middle of the night. Outsiders - our friends and family even - will never understand the daunting nature of this profession. This is an even handed narrative of the frustrating day to day work that emergency docs (and nurses) do, usually without thanks. Good job, Paul, for telling it like it is.