Critical cover art

Critical

Science and Stories from the Brink of Human Life

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Critical

By: Dr Matt Morgan
Narrated by: Dr Matt Morgan
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About this listen

 Journey into the world of intensive care medicine and the lives of people who have forever been changed by it.

‘A very special book filled with stories of survival, hope and loss.’
Adam Kay

'[Morgan's] wit and compassion are everywhere evident in this enlightening book, and he makes a welcome contribution to our understanding of these extraordinary times.'
Sunday Times

There is no room for error in the ICU. Full focus is required at all times.
It can be the difference between life and death.

Through the remarkable stories of his patients, Dr. Matt Morgan guides you through the body and its organs. He explains how various critical conditions arise, and all that goes into treating them – from the science, research and technology, to the tireless efforts of the doctors and nurses. This book gives you powerful insights about intensive care, many of which may prevent you, or those close to you, from ending up there. It will even teach you how to save a life.

Movingly and compassionately, Matt writes about the cases and the people that have stayed with him, both the recoveries and the losses. This book shows the fragility of life, but also the incredible resilience of the human body and spirit.

Sometimes darkness can show you the light.©2019 Dr Matt Morgan (P)2019 Simon & Schuster UK Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Medicine

Critic Reviews

'Matt Morgan is an engaging, honest and perceptive doctor who has managed to pack an awful lot into his career. This book promises to offer a real insight into an area of life and death medicine that many of us will have seen dramatised on television.’ (Dr Michael Mosley, bestselling author of The Fast Diet, The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet and The Clever Guts Diet)
'Matt Morgan writes beautifully and movingly about the edges of life. Through vivid encounters and pitch-perfect insights, he shines a light on the human experience at the frontiers of healthcare.' (Ganesh Suntharalingam, President, Intensive Care Society)
‘A very special book filled with stories of survival, hope and loss.' (Adam Kay, author of the best-selling book This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor)
‘I loved it. So carefully written and obviously as a doctor, I could totally get behind the stories of Gram and the origin of ICU, but the patients…just so touching. I love the exploration of what it means to survive, at what cost and so on. A lovely book.’ (Dr Nikki Stamp FRACS, Cardiothoracic and Transplant Surgeon and author of Can You Die of a Broken Heart? A Heart Surgeon's Insight Into What Makes Us Tick)
‘A gripping realism of life in intensive care that reminds us how fragile is life. Written with humility and insight this is an intriguing glimpse into a world of life-saving decisions. It is life affirming and hugely reassuring.’ (Professor Dame Sue Black, author of All That Remains: A Life in Death)
‘This book is marvellous: buy it, share it, recommend it....We are fortunate to have dedicated, caring and humble folks such as Doc Morgan on the Critical Care front line. We are even better off when a writer can capture all that this exciting, mad, glorious and even exasperating job means. If you work in healthcare, know somebody that does, or simply inhabit a body then this book is for you: in fact it's critical.’ (Peter Brindley MD FRCP Can FRCP Edin FRCP Lond, Professor of Critical Care Medicine, Anesthesiology, Medical Ethics, University of Alberta)
All stars
Most relevant
As a Physio who has worked for the last 16 years in ED (and a short stint in ICU prior) I loved this book. Especially the reference to Royal Perth Hospital where I did a lot of my training in the early 2000’s. The medical explanations were great!

Listened to the whole story in 2 days!

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Dr Morgan's storytelling and educational style is seamless. His journey manages to highlight important health topics in a layman's approach and still captures the scientific importance.

Fantastic! Everyone needs to know this stuff.

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working in health administration at a cancer centre this book is very interesting & also helps me understand daily dealings from the Dr's perspective.
Thank you it's been a great read.

loved it very real

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This audiobook was both inspiring and fulfilling to listen to. Dr Moran had broken down the complex world of Intensive Care to easy to follow segments that draw you in from both the medicine and human aspect of it. The recording was clear, soft and very soothing, even though some of the story was not as cheerful. I have gained a much deeper respect to him, his work, and his specialty. This is a must listen to both medical and non-medical alike.

Don't let the Science pushes you away, the Human Stories in this book are exceptionally inspiring, both in live and in death.

Fulfilling

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I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
It is very insightful, informative and easy to understand for the lay person with little medical knowledge.
I loved that it was narrated by the author who has an easy to listen to, calming and melodic voice.

Brilliant

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This book by Dr Morgan has helped rekindle my love for medicine. I would strongly recommend this book to medical students, any medical professional or those who are medically minded. Dr Morgan illustrates in a charming UK accent how his life has been shaped by the patients he has cared for and provides a few tips for those of whom may wish to follow him on what he describes as the best job in the world. If you are scrolling and love both science and great storytelling, please look no further.

Nothing short of inspiring

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Loved the themes and the way the story was presented! A good read to complement other medical books.

Great read

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I learned a lot about the critical doctor and how the icu saves people. I also learned to respect all the people working in the medical field as they save lives.

The medical information and the kindness of the author

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There are a thousand reasons to read this book, but as a former Emergency and Trauma nurse, the one that stands out is that the author highlights the four most important words a doctor can say, ‘I do not know’. Nothing makes nurses trust a doctor more than when they are honest enough to say these words, it shows humility, character and, intellect. For people in general I urge you to read this and you will take away many lessons and knowledge, none more important than what you should do if you or a loved one ever need an ICU admission. The worst feeling I ever experienced is having to try to explain to family that intensive care would not help their loved one, it would be an expensive, drawn out torture for no benefit whatsoever to the patient. but as the author so eloquently put it, ‘in some cases, it does not prolong life, it prolongs death, robbing that patients life of its dignity’. Cannot recommend this highly enough. And as an Aussie, I’ve always found the Welsh accent unpretentious and easy to listen to. If you find need of an intensivist, you should hope for one as caring and skilled at his or her craft as this.

Fantastic, important and real

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If the author has future editions, more cases would enrich the book. Each ICU patient has a good story and the book already described a number of them. Yet, the author tried to express his own views along with the cases in plain statements. Personally, I think he does not need to spell out so explicitly. He could include similar cases to bring out the point he wants to make or narrate the cases differently to impact the readers at emotional level so that his point is felt instead of read.

A glimpse of intensive care

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