An inside look at one of the nation’s most famous public hospitals as seen through the eyes of its longtime director of intensive care
 
Filled with stories of strange medical cases and unforgettable patients culled from a 30-year career in medicine, Cook County ICU offers readers a peek into the inner workings of a hospital. Author Dr. Cory Franklin, who headed the hospital’s intensive care unit from the 1970s through the 1990s, shares his most unique and bizarre experiences, including the deadly Chicago heatwave of 1995, treating the first AIDS patients in the country before the disease was diagnosed, the nurse with rare Muchausen syndrome, the only surviving ricin victim, and the professor with Alzheimer’s hiding the effects of the wrong medication. Surprising, darkly humorous, heartwarming, and sometimes tragic, these stories provide a big-picture look at how the practice of medicine has changed over the years, making it an enjoyable read for patients, doctors, and anyone with an interest in medicine.

“Longtime doctor and first-rate observer Cory Franklin writes that, in the emergency room, ‘the day shift was rap music, the evening shift was easy listening, and the overnight shift was jazz.’ Franklin is an overnighter, riffing on practitioners and patients, jamming with equal parts pride and regret about his fascinating and sometimes brutal world.” —Marilyn Johnson, author of Lives in Ruins: Archaeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble

“For those who know Cook County Hospital or trained there as I did, this book will rekindle emotions from those times. I can honestly say that this book is a phenomenal, funny yet poignant read. It’s a ‘must read’ for anyone interested in Chicago institutions and legends in medicine.” —George Bakris, MD, FASN, FAHA, Professor of Medicine, University of Chicago Medicine

“The Cook County Hospital intensive care unit was the focal point whereupon Chicagoans in the inner city either survived or succumbed to the rigors of urban life. Using a combination of clinical anecdotes from all phases of his medical career and historical notes, Dr. Franklin resuscitates the Cook County ICU, bringing it back to life for the reader. A must read for anyone interested in the historical landscape of Chicago critical care.” —Jerrold B. Leikin, MD

“[a] deeply humanist collection.” —Publishers Weekly

“For readers who enjoy true-medicine stories, this is one of those reward-yourself kinds of books filled with anecdotes you’ll eat up. It’s compelling, comic, and constantly addicting so, for you, missing Cook County ICU would be very wrong.” —The Bookworm Sez

"a fascinating book of interesting medical cases brought to life." —Blogging Astrid

Cory Franklin, MD, spent 25 years as the director of intensive care at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. He is an editorial board contributor to the Chicago Tribune and the author of Chicago Flashbulbs. His work has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the New York Times, the New York Post, the Washington Post, and the Chicago Sun-Times. He lives in Wilmette, Illinois.