Psychiatry

Psychiatry. Second edition. Oxford Core Texts series

Gelder M, Mayou R, Geddes J

New York: Oxford University Press; 1999

ISBN 0-19262-888-7

The first edition of this book was called The Concise Oxford Text of Psychiatry, and the title change implies that the authors and publishers are attempting to broaden the book’s appeal. The 3 authors are senior academic psychiatrists from the University of Oxford.

Before reviewing the book, I made a list of the key requirements of a textbook for medical students: clarity, comprehensiveness, conciseness, cost, practicality and pertinence. This book scores high on all these items with the exception of cost and pertinence. It emphasizes strongly the integration between psychiatry and general medicine, yet the psychosocial aspects of medicine and psychiatry are also underlined. An appropriate balance between comprehensiveness and overinclusive detail is maintained, and liberal use is made of tables, diagrams lists and summaries. Many chapters also include “screening questions” — a list of questions that can be asked of a patient to rule out a specific diagnosis. The chapters on suicide, pharmacotherapy and “psychological” treatment (as the psychotherapies are called in the quaint British tradition) are particularly well written.

The book has its limitations. The chapter on psychiatry and the law is written for British readers and has limited relevance to other jurisdictions. For a soft cover, this book is not cheap. Finally, there are few references, although each chapter concludes with a recommended reading list.

With these provisos, the book can be highly recommended to medical students and to non-psychiatric residents who are interested in a readable and practical introduction to psychiatry.