Book Reviews |
Law for Doctors: Principles and Practicalities
Edited by John Paul Garside. Published by The Royal Society of Medicine Press, 3rd edition, 2006. ISBN 1-85315-681-7. Price: £14.95. 94 pp.
The author of this 94-page book is well qualified in medico-legal issues, with extensive NHS experience and works as head of legal services at a large NHS Trust.
The book is intended as a brief user-friendly guide, focusing on aspects of statute and case law relevant to doctors, updating previous editions and incorporating a new section on the Human Rights Act. There are brief case summaries at the end of each chapter, a glossary of legal terms and sources of free legal information on the internet to dip into. Very useful.
Issues relevant to occupational health (OH) physicians include those relating to structure and sources of English law, principles of negligence, duty and standards of care, legal procedure, role of expert witnesses, confidentiality, disclosure, complaints, whistle blowing and the criminal law. The mention of the OH role in the management of poorly performing doctors is especially welcome.
The inclusion of a chapter on ethical issues in the legal domain would in my view have made a useful addition.
Many doctors, including those working in OH, admit to being worried about legal issues. This book succeeds in allaying anxieties about medico-legal issues by covering issues of interest to doctors, albeit concisely. It is ideal for brief bursts of reading where doctors have little time for reading or little inclination to wade through weighty legal tomes or jargon.
Some OH physicians may be disappointed by the brief and succinct description of issues relevant to OH, such as informed consent and the Access to Medical Records Act. It should be borne in mind that this book is aimed at all doctors and not specifically at doctors in OH and will never be a substitute for, but a useful adjunct to Diana Kloss's book on OH law.
Most, if not all doctors in occupational medicine, will learn something from this affordable, concise, well written, ‘short and sweet’ book on general medico-legal issues. Buy.
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(Buy, read and keep.)
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