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The Hospital: Life, Death, and Dollars in a Small American Town



by
Brian Alexander

Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
Macmillan
Imprint
St. Martin's Press (Adult)
ISBN
9781250237354
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Strong Language, Discrimination: Reference/Discussion, Medical: Reproductive/Sexual Reference/Discussion, Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco: Reference or Discussion
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An intimate, heart wrenching portrait of one small hospital that reveals the magnitude of America’s health care crises.

By following the struggle for survival of one small-town hospital, and the patients who walk, or are carried, through its doors,The Hospital takes readers into the world of the American medical industry in a way no book has done before. Americans are dying sooner, and living in poorer health. Alexander argues that no plan will solve America’s health crisis until the deeper causes of that crisis are addressed.

Bryan, Ohio's hospital, is losing money, making it vulnerable to big health systems seeking domination and Phil Ennen, CEO, has been fighting to preserve its independence. Meanwhile, Bryan, a town of 8,500 people in Ohio’s northwest corner, is still trying to recover from the Great Recession. As local leaders struggle to address the town’s problems, and the hospital fights for its life amid a rapidly consolidating medical and hospital industry, a 39-year-old diabetic literally fights for his limbs, and a 55-year-old contractor lies dying in the emergency room. With these and other stories, Alexander strips away the wonkiness of policy to reveal Americans’ struggle for health against a powerful system that’s stacked against them, but yet so fragile it blows apart when the pandemic hits. Culminating with COVID-19, this book offers a blueprint for how we created the crisis we're in.Note to readers. Notes. Index.

POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Language: Strong Language, Discrimination: Reference/Discussion, Medical: Reproductive/Sexual Reference/Discussion, Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco: Reference or Discussion

Details

Format

Print

Page Count

320

Trim Size

9 1/2" x 6 1/2"

Dewey

362.10973

AR

0: points 0

Genre

Nonfic

Scholastic Reading Counts

0

JLG Release

Jul 2021

Book Genres

Narrative Nonfiction

Topics

US public health. Public health administration. Health-care finance. Hospital administration. US medical industry. Small towns. Bryan, Ohio.

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Praise & Reviews

The Horn Book

Small nonprofit hospitals in the United States faced increasing difficulties even before the COVID-19 pandemic upended economic realities for businesses of all kinds. With intimate access to a small nonprofit hospital in the community of Bryan, OH, Alexander (Glass House) spent fall 2018 through summer 2020 using it as a template for a study of health care in the U.S., the forces transforming it, and the real impact it has on people. The hospital CEO's story becomes the linchpin for the broader view, as he deals with financial and structural issues, personnel, government at all levels, local needs and wants, and the corporatization of hospitals. Alexander also spends time with health care workers, leaders of other hospitals, and many people in the surrounding community, relating their struggles to the larger picture. His clear conclusion is that the increasing disparity in health care is inextricably linked to the income and social disparities that the pandemic has made all too clear. VERDICT The time Alexander spent embedded in the community gives continuity and depth to the stories of the individuals he connected with and puts a human face on broader issues of social inequality. This expertly reported account will resonate and find a wide audience.-Richard Maxwell, Porter Adventist Hosp. Lib., Denver

Praise & Reviews

The Horn Book

Small nonprofit hospitals in the United States faced increasing difficulties even before the COVID-19 pandemic upended economic realities for businesses of all kinds. With intimate access to a small nonprofit hospital in the community of Bryan, OH, Alexander (Glass House) spent fall 2018 through summer 2020 using it as a template for a study of health care in the U.S., the forces transforming it, and the real impact it has on people. The hospital CEO's story becomes the linchpin for the broader view, as he deals with financial and structural issues, personnel, government at all levels, local needs and wants, and the corporatization of hospitals. Alexander also spends time with health care workers, leaders of other hospitals, and many people in the surrounding community, relating their struggles to the larger picture. His clear conclusion is that the increasing disparity in health care is inextricably linked to the income and social disparities that the pandemic has made all too clear. VERDICT The time Alexander spent embedded in the community gives continuity and depth to the stories of the individuals he connected with and puts a human face on broader issues of social inequality. This expertly reported account will resonate and find a wide audience.-Richard Maxwell, Porter Adventist Hosp. Lib., Denver

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