Pediatric Assessment: Pocket Guide Series

BOOK AND MEDIA REVIEW

Column Editor: Gail M. Kieckhefer, PhD, ARNP

Pediatric Assessment: Pocket Guide Series ByJoyce Engle. St. Louis: Mosby, 2002, $24.95, Soft-cover, 382 pp.

The fourth edition of this popular book fornurses has been revised and new material added tomake it even more useful to the new pediatricnurse. The experienced nurse who wants a physicalassessment guide that is easy to carry about willalso find this book fitting the need. As always, thecontent is basic and succinct. The tables and fig-ures remain helpful in presenting a large amount ofinformation. The index is easy to follow, and thepresentation by body system allows for quick ref-erence. The new Center for Disease Controlgrowth charts, including those for body mass in-dex, are a welcome addition. The added informa-tion on assessment of headache and cough appears

useful. The overview section on cultural compe-tency could be expanded to include additionaloverarching considerations, but the tabular presen-tation of culturally diverse beliefs should stimulatereflection on the part of the reader.

The text will remain a favorite of nurses whowant a quick reference guide, especially pediatricnursing students learning physical assessmentskills. Nurses wanting to better understand thephysiology or theoretical rationale for findings willneed to seek additional references.

Gail M. Kieckhefer, ARNP, PhDAssociate Professor, Family and Child Nursing

University of WashingtonSeattle, WA

368 Journal of Pediatric Nursing, Vol 17, No 5 (October), 2002