About the series

Oxford Handbooks

The Oxford Handbooks are the market-leading series of pocket handbooks for a broad medical readership, from students, junior doctors and specialist trainees, to nurses, dentists, paramedics, and allied health professionals.

The series began with the publication in 1985 of the world-famous Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine. Starting life as handwritten notes to help the authors get through their junior doctor years, it is now the world's best-selling medical handbook. Since then the series has grown to around 50 books, and we aim to publish one in each major medical specialty by 2010. They fall into two broad categories; those for medical students and junior doctors, and those for specialist trainees.

The Oxford Handbooks' reputation is built on including only the best quality, clinically relevant information. Every book is reviewed by representatives of the intended readership, and checked by subject experts. Extensive market research tracks changes in medical training and practice, and makes sure that every book in the series delivers exactly what readers need. Where relevant, junior co-authors ensure the content is kept relevant to the core readership, and reflects the reality of day-to-day medical practice.

We are proud not only of the content of the Oxford Handbooks, but also the unique features of the format and the high standards of production for which they have become known. Information is presented with one topic per page, in a style which is quick and easy to take in. The books are designed to help readers find the information they need quickly, with contents tabbed on the back cover and the sides of pages, and emergency sections banded in red. Heavy-duty plastic covers and ribbon bookmarks are perennially popular, and blank pages for the reader's notes mean that an Oxford Handbook can be kept up to date for years.

OUP is continually reassessing the way we transmit information. We are experimenting with publishing Oxford Handbooks for PDAs, and for the first time in 2006 we produced a 'mini' Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine. We are also expanding the Oxford Handbooks series into new areas. The first Oxford Handbooks in Nursing will be available in Autumn 2006, with the allied health professions and veterinary medicine due to get Oxford Handbooks in the next few years.

Seen in every hospital and GP surgery across the UK and used throughout the world, the Oxford Handbooks are an institution which is going from strength to strength.