Author(s): Tony Townsend

NZ Biographies & Memoirs

More than just a memoir. Based on the author's 50 years of medical practice, teaching, and writing but supported and expanded by the international medical literature. I remember my friend and mentor, Pat Farry, saying more than once, 'You might be just a country boy, but you are never just a GP.' This book is about what GPs do and how they do it. Although written as a memoir, it champions general practice as an essential medical specialty. This is a short book about general practice medicine written for the public. I include insights into decision-making, systems thinking, pattern-recognition, and advocacy. There are also chapters on emergency care, boundary issues, bias, medical errors, death and dying and the importance of teaching and learning in medical practice.