Scars & Stains: Lessons from Intensive Care

Airway. Breathing. Circulation. Disability. Exposure.

Perhaps the five most misunderstood words in life support.

Join anaesthetics and intensive care doctor, and award-winning writer Dr Mark ZY Tan, as he lays bare the clinical, ethical, and moral dilemmas facing intensive care professionals in today’s complex world. Scars and Stains takes readers into the world of intensive care, where split-second decisions and precise skills can forever impact the lives of patients and their families. It is a journey that crosses continents, communities, and cultures - from the slums of Thailand and jungles of Papua New Guinea to the wealthiest districts of London and largest hospitals in the UK. Caring for some of the most unwell patients, with the help of high-tech machinery, and often in emotionally volatile situations, Mark provides moving - and often eye-opening - insights into this fascinating frontier of medicine. He brings together the science underpinning this high-stakes specialty with the humanity required to navigate life and death decisions.

Written for anyone interested in the reality of life on the frontline, the book challenges preconceived notions of the ICU, sheds light on the often-misunderstood realities faced by patients, their loved ones, and healthcare professionals in the most challenging of environments, and guides readers in considering their own preferences and priorities when faced with life-limiting illnesses.

Foreword by Matt Morgan, author of Critical (2020) and One Medicine (2023)

About the Author

Mark ZY Tan is an intensive care doctor based in Manchester. He has won 1st and 3rd prizes for the Doctors for the NHS essay competitions (2023 and 2021, respectively), 1st and joint 2nd prize for the Society of Medical Writers’ non-fiction competition in 2022, and 2nd prize for the Health Education England essay competition 2021.