Clinical Skills Explained

Clinical Skills Explained bridges the gap between the major textbooks and the OSCE crammer books. This is a succinct book that will really help you understand the clinical skills you are learning, rather than 'simply learning by checklist'.

HIGHLY COMMENDED IN THE BMA MEDICAL BOOK AWARDS 2013!

Clinical Skills Explained guides readers through the clinical skills typically required at medical school. Most clinical skills books are either brief ''checklist-type'' books, or very detailed physical examination books. Clinical Skills Explained is different; it covers the topic concisely to fit in with the needs of the modern medical student, but also provides enough background knowledge to ensure the reader knows the why as well as the how.

The book is written in a clear logical style and covers:

• history taking
• clinical examinations
• standard procedures

Each chapter starts by providing a short step-by-step guide to what you need to do (the ideal aide-memoire) then describes the background knowledge and relevant pathophysiology before moving on to a systematic approach on how to tackle the skill at hand. At all stages the text is supported by clear full colour diagrams to reinforce understanding.

The authors also provide quick reminder boxes covering:

• top tips
• medical guidelines
• differential diagnoses
• diagnostic indicators

To test your understanding, each chapter ends with a series of clinical scenarios that are typical of the cases you will come up against. These encourage you to assess the key features, consider the likely diagnosis, and decide what questions you might ask, or further investigations you might request, to confirm your diagnosis.

From reviews:
"With a philosophy that there is more to learning clinical skills than following checklists, this book offers students a clear, concise manual from which they can learn clinical skills and procedures in a systematic manner; whilst developing an understanding of not only what they need to do and why they need to do it, but also learn to apply key elements of theory to patient presentation and examination findings to generate differential diagnoses... This book will be extremely useful for students in the early stages of their training. By integrating clinical skills information with core basic scientific knowledge, it allows students to apply theory to practice as they develop essential clinical skills and basic problem solving skills."
International Journal of Clinical Skills, 2013