[.ca] Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary [Indexed] (ISBN 0803612079)

Indispensable for Professionals, Students, & Laypeople:
This dictionary has enough information to be useful for even the most learned medical professional and is still simple enough to use to be accessible to any mildly educated member of society. The dictionary is much more than simply a dictionary. Consisting of the vocabulary section and then some appendices, this 2270-page godsend is chockfull of definitions, examples, full-color diagrams, charts, diagnoses, and more. The preface to the dictionary actually lists all of the features of this cyclopedic dictionary, so I will regurgitate it here: 1. Vocabulary 2. Easy-to-Use Entry Format 3. Alphabetization 4. Eponyms (including biographies of those after whom things were named) 5. Definitions 6. Pronunciations 7. Singular/Plural Forms 8. Etymologies 9. Abbreviations 10. Encyclopedic Entries 11. Illustrations 12. Tables 13. Adjective Forms of Words 14. Cautionary Statements 15. Synonyms (Very helpful!) 16. Cross-References 17. Appendices (Basically all the stuff that doesn't fit well within the dictionary, like medical terminology prefixes, suffixes, and combining forms as well as lots of various classification schemes) 18. Nursing Diagnoses Appendix The book comes with a trial subscription to Taber's Online. This is my only complaint. Taber's Online does not appear to have received the thorough thought that the printed version did. I found that it was generally unhelpful, but you don't have to pay any extra for it, so I'm not complaining, just commenting. Overall, I would strongly recommend buying the Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary.

A must have for any Nursing student:
I can't tell you how invaluable this book is to me. It is safe to say I would be lost without it. I am in a bridge nursing program (RN-Masters) and have never worked in the medical feild before. Upper division textbooks are usually unhelpful because they contain no glossary at the back of the book. If your books are the same way this book is a necessity! Definitions are in plain english rather than crazy medical jargon so you rarely have to filp pages to define words in the definition of the original word in question. Even better are the multitude of pictures and diagrams that really solidify your understanding of select terms. There are some additional niceties specifially for nurses or nursing students. The appendix is filled with useful nursing guides such as: 1. Nutrition and dietary refrence values 2. Herbal medicines and their uses 3. Normal refrence laboratory values 4. Prefixes and suffixes 5. Latin and Greek nomenclature 6. Medical abbreviations 7. Units of measurement 8. Mini English-Spanish-French dictionary inclusive of specific medical phrases that may be used on the job 9. Classification of poisons and poisoning, including pathology, symptoms, and medical treatment 10. Addresses for health care resources and organizations, and nursing organizations 11. NIC and NOC lists 12. Nursing diagnosis 13. Conceptual models and theories of nursing Those additional resources alone are worth the price of this book. You may be on a tight budget, but this is one book you cannot afford to be without.

Couldn't be better:
This book is a must have for new medical students. In the first 2 yrs of nedical school you will be hit with zillions of new tems and this dictionary is small and complete. You can easily take it to class with you and use it for a quick reference. PDA version is nice too (no pictures though).

A useful and comprehensive resource:
I used this dictionary for many courses in the allied health discipline. I especially liked the way the dictionary categorized diseases by etiology, symptoms, course, and treatment. The appendices and illustrations were useful as well. One drawback to the dictionary is that some of the terms are hard to find; sometimes, one must flip back and forth while it leads you on a wild goose chase. As a whole, Taber's is an excellent pick for anyone choosing health as a clinical practice.

who needs a dictionary:
THIS DICTIONARY WAS OKAY. I BOUGHT IT AS A MEDICAL STUDENT THINKING IT WOULD BE USEFUL, IT WAS NOT. I GUESS IT WOULD BE USEFUL FOR PEOPLE OUT OF THE MEDICAL FIELD WHO WANT TO LOOK SOMETHING UP BUT WAS NOT USEFUL FOR ME.