This is Going to Hurt

Starred review from November 1, 2018
Kay worked for six years as a student doctor for the National Health System (NHS) in Great Britain before leaving medicine to become a TV scriptwriter. He worked mostly in the ob-gyn section of the hospitals until finally succumbing to the long hours, low pay, and constant stress. This medical memoir is based on the diary he kept throughout those years. Kay has an edgy tone as he alternates between gallows humor and heartbreaking tales. Frequent footnotes explain medical terms in very accessible language. Learning as he goes, Kay finds himself performing cesareans, delivering babies by forceps, stitching up new moms, mopping up blood, removing a variety of objects from body openings, soothing patients, and teaching younger doctors. His personal life is filled with broken plans, little sleep, and a faithful, if increasingly impatient, partner. Kay's journals chart the hectic life of a young doctor who tries to help patients without mucking up, suffers over mistakes, and celebrates the times he was able to make a difference. Readers may be inclined to send their own doctors a thank-you note after reading this candid, caring memoir. A best-seller in England, Kay's book is being adapted for a BBC comedy drama.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)