Books like Crisis

At the risk of being CRITICAL, let me just state that Robin Cook’s novel CRISIS is convoluted enough, and has more than enough medical mumbo-jumbo to place it at the top of your list of books most likely to put you into a COMA.With CRITICAL he took us into the arena of hotel-like specialized private hospitals that are in fact stockholder owned big businesses. In CRISIS we once again visit the dark side of medicine, this time examining the system known as “concierge medicine” where doctors are paid an upfront membership fee that insures the patient of “extras” such as 24 hour access to your doctor, same day appointments for the very ill and house calls when you are too ill to come into the office. (I am old enough to remember when these “concierge” offerings, now deemed as “extras” requiring additional payment, were standards services your family doctor provided to all of his patients). The other ogre rearing its ugly head in CRISIS is that of medical malpractice suits. Cook has created a scenario in which there are very few “good guys”. The doctor accused of malpractice comes across as a greedy, self-absorbed creep; the trial lawyers are of the slimy “win at any cost” mindset and the plaintiff employs his own hired muscle in his attempt to achieve his ends. Just about the only characters with morals or values are Jack the medical examiner, his sister Alexis and Jacks fiancée Laurie. Jacks investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the plaintiffs’ wife is a long and boring read and his findings and the ultimate conclusion of the story come right out of left field.In my opinion, there is little reason to recommend this book be added to your “books to read” list.