Burn Unit
Saving Lives After the Flames
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“A compelling blend of science, history and storytelling. Barbara Ravage has fashioned an enlightening, invaluable book.” —Stewart O'Nan, author of The Circus Fire: A True Story of an American TragedyThough each of us is just a spark away from being a burn victim, the public knows little and understands less about the world that patients inhabit. Pulling the curtains back on this private and sterile environment, Burn Unit is a riveting account of the frontline efforts—both modern-day and historical—to save lives devastated by fire. With unflinching urgency, Barbara Ravage follows an extraordinary team of healers at Massachusetts General Hospital, the cradle of modern burn treatment and the site of one of the best burn units in the world. From Boston's Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942 to the treatment of the victims of the Rhode Island nightclub fire in early 2003, we watch everyday heroes do their incredible but punishing work against the backdrop of history. Both a moving human drama and an engrossing scientific exploration of this little-known field of medicine, Burn Unit is an unforgettably powerful read.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Science writer Ravage delivers a fascinating and unflinching look behind the scenes at the nationally acclaimed burn unit of Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital. The reader is warned early on that the unit is "no place for the squeamish," and the book details numerous examples of the hard work that its doctors and nurses must perform, such as the excision of dead skin that "comes off like peels of rubber cement." But Ravage is never gratuitously graphic, and she displays solid research and reporting skills in presenting the historical and the personal sides of burn injuries. She provides an excellent historical context to the development of burn treatments, from Boston's infamous Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942 through last year's fire at a Rhode Island music club. She also uses the experiences of two former burn patients and their families (names changed at their request) to show in detail how doctors and nurses treat horrific burns. Her greatest success is in interweaving these two sides, such as her explanation of how ideas have evolved in the areas of respiratory injury, shock and the surface treatment of burn wounds, which brings the reader much closer to truly understanding what the patients endure. This is an enlightening look at an important area of hospital care.
