This is one of the best books that I  have read. It consists of 48 chapters, each one discussing a common scenario where  
a patient can be difficult. When you read this book 
you start recalling memories of almost the same 
situations you went through yourself. You will 
realise after reading the book that it would have 

been much more useful if you had read this book 
before graduation from medical school. You would 
then have been more skilled in handling similar 
situations from the start of your career. 

The way this book is organised makes it very 
attractive to read. Each chapter starts with a 
problem, illustrated by a dialogue between the 
doctor and the patient, representing day to day 
phrases and responses in clinical practice. Then 
the authors give the principles for handling the  
situation, followed by procedures for applying 
them. Next, they talk about the  pitfalls to avoid 
and finally end with a pearl of wisdom for that 
particular scenario. This is usually the message 
that you need to take from the chapter. After each 
chapter, the authors provided references to selected 
readings for those who are interested to read more 
in depth about that scenario. The language of the 
book is simple and easily understood. The book also 
contains several illustrative photographs that show 
the gestures and position of patient responses. The 
physical structure of the book is very handy and it 
can be easily carried in your pocket. 

It is very hard to say much that is negative about 
this book, but since it was published by people who 
are living and practicing at United States, they have 
used scenarios common in their culture. These 
might not be applicable for people with major 

differences in culture, attitudes and beliefs. However, 
this is not the case in most of the chapters and you 
can easily skip a chapter if you feel the scenario is 
not related to your practice. 

I highly recommend this book to all practising 
physicians and medical students and it is a good 

الدليل امليداني ملقابلة املرضى الصعبني
املوؤلفون: فريدريك بالت وجيوفري جوردون

book review

Field Guide to the Difficult Patient Interview
Authors: Frederic W. Platt & Geoffrey H. Gordon

Publisher: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2nd Edition, 2004
ISBN: 0-7817-4774-0

Orders: http://www.lww.com/product/?978-0-7817-4774-5

SQU Med J, August 2010, Vol. 10, Iss. 2, pp. 285-286, Epub. 19th Jun 10
Submitted: - 6th Mar 10



Field Guide to the Difficult Patient Interview

286 | SQU Medical Journal, April 2010, Volume 10, Issue 1

choice for faculty who teaches communication skills 
for health care providers.

r e v i e w e r

Ahmed S Al-Busaidi
Department of Family Medicine & Public Health, 
Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman 
Email: aalbusaidi@hotmail.com