Sherlock and I Return: The Presentation of Additional Medical Mysteries

Book excerpt: After reading Dr. Kassis’ hospital notes in November 2014, a nurse consultant urged Dr. Kassis to write about some of the most difficult cases that he had encountered over his career. Dr. Kassis subsequently wrote his first book Sherlock and I a Memoir of Medical Mysteries in a US Rural Practice. Having been asked to write a sequel, Dr. Kassis now first presents the reader with details of the training that every potential physician must endure before he or she may be labeled as a physician. It is in the second half of his book that Dr. Kassis once again describes patients with critical illnesses as well many who presented diagnostic conundrums. A lifelong fan of Sherlock Holmes, throughout the book he emphasizes the diagnostic process, especially the importance of obtaining an accurate history from the patient. Most importantly, Dr. Kassis presents the material in a manner which a non-medical person can easily understand. Anyone who reads this book will have a better understanding of how his or her physician formulates a diagnosis – a process which must always come before any treatment might be initiated.