Inside the ICU: A Nursing Perspective

Nurses write books about their experiences or they write books for educational purposes. Inside the ICU: A Nursing Perspective is one of those rare books that combine these 2 types of books. There are 20 chapters and some short stories interjected between chapters that Stenrose calls “Potpourri.” Each chapter has a particular focus, for example, touring the intensive care unit (ICU) or beginning as an ICU nurse. The progression of topics is similar to the progression of a career—from the first days working in the ICU to the application of those experiences to one’s personal life.

Each chapter begins with a short clinical explanation of a topic, such as organ donation, followed by the story of a personal experience. Some chapters flow back and forth between the clinical explanations and stories to demonstrate the topic. Any nurse who has worked in an ICU...