Reviews (9)

Brave enough to read this book?
Richard D. Lamm, former three-term governor of Colorado, has written a thought-provoking book, which should be required reading for any American who pays taxes or who will some day get sick. America, some of its citizens often proclaim, has the "best health care system in the world." Not so, Lamm argues:our medical miracles are parceled out to certain segments of society while forty-plus million Americans lack basic health care. Public health statistics consistently show the US lagging behind other developed countries in terms of life expectancy and infant mortality. Lamm uses the data to support his contention in this book that "The time has come to ask--and answer--some hard questions about how American health care dollars are actually being spent and about what we as a society are getting for that expenditure."
Ethics and Economics - an American Challenge
Lamm clearly shows that the US health care system puts priority higher on the ethics of personal medical practice than it does on the overall health of the US population. Our (US) system is provider driven, which results in defensive medicine and over treatments. "Long shot" medical practice costs us: 27 percent of costs are for the sickest 1 percent. US spends about 50 percent more per person than other developed countries spend. Why? Says Lamm: "We fund too much marginal medicine and fail to fund enough basic health care.We spend too much on high technology medicine and not enough on prevention." This amounts to spending the budget to save a few trees while the forest gets weak and sick. Endorsement for: THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF HEALTH CARE
What health care nightmare has your name on it?The United States is $7 trillion in debt. Consumer debt exceeds $2 trillion.The average American credit card carries an $8,000.00 balance. As baby boomers eat and age their way into a health care pile up in the next 10 years, our health care industry recoils against horrific odds in providing for millions of Americans. Not withstanding, millions of legal and illegal immigrants have not and did not pay into a system they use today. Millions of uninsured Americans suffer.Read more

Subjects:  1. Economic aspects    2. Health Care Delivery    3. Health Policy    4. Health care reform    5. Medical / Nursing    6. Medical policy    7. Political Science    8. Politics/International Relations    9. Public Policy - General    10. Public health    11. United States   

Reviews (3)

excellent review and basis for public health study
Well written and a great basis for understanding issues and policies concerning the development of public health programs worldwide.I was most impressed that the authors stressed that we in America are intergrated with the world on health issues.Even at the local level we need to think globally.

Maha Yousufzai, PhD canidate
I am currently working on my PhD in Public Health and I found this book to be exciting and very interesting. A must have in your private book collection. Maha

International Public Health book
This book is well written by experts in the field. Although it is like reading a textbook, I highly recommend it to anyone interested in international development and/or public health issues abroad. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Health Care Delivery    2. Health Policy    3. International Relations - General    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Political Science    6. Politics/International Relations    7. Public Health   

Reviews (1)

Competitive strategy applied to provider-side healthcare
I was pleasantly surprised by this book, which provides a nice overview of the leading concepts in graduate-level, economics-based competitive strategy as it applies to provider-side healthcare.The book takes many of the key concepts and frameworks from the likes of Porter, Mintzberg, Ghemawat, Hamel, Prahalad, etc., and applies them to provider-based strategic competition in a way that is both intuitive and functional.If you're not already familiar with the authors mentioned above, the book is a good starting place for moving on to more advanced (though less healthcare- and provider-specific) work.Regardless, I'd highly recommend this book for those trying to improve the rigor of their strategic thinking for hospitals, medical groups, schools of medicine, and health systems. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Health Care Delivery    2. Health Care Planning    3. Health Policy    4. Health care reform    5. Health planning    6. Hospital Administration    7. Medical    8. Medical / Nursing    9. Medical policy    10. Sociology    11. United States   

Subjects:  1. Collected Works    2. Ethics    3. Health Care Delivery    4. Health Policy    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Medical policy    8. Narrative medicine    9. Political Freedom & Security - International Secur    10. United States    11. Health systems & services    12. Political Science / International Security   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Health    3. Health Policy    4. Industrial hygiene    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Occupational & Industrial Medicine    8. Social aspects    9. Social medicine    10. Sociology    11. Medicine: General Issues    12. Office & workplace    13. Social Science / General   

Subjects:  1. Health Care Delivery    2. Health Policy    3. Medical    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Medical care    6. Patients    7. Quality control    8. Safety measures   

Reviews (1)

Great writing, good ideas - best quick read in public health
There have been a number of recent books about health habits and the environment, but this is by far the most enjoyable read. The writing is outstanding and not the clunky prose you often encounter in books written by academics- I wish I could write like them. Although written for a general audience, with (good) human interest anecdotes, the book nevertheless covers some deeper ideas, such as "curve shifting". The idea is that how often we encounter extreme outcomes, whether severe obesity, alcoholism, HIV, depends on "normal" or average behavior in the population. The early chapters that elaborate on those ideas alone are worth reading the book. I don't care too much about "passionate advocacy" and while the authors do fall into the advocacy camp, there is very little of the whining or scolding that has turned me off in other related books. Instead, arguments are generally well balanced even if you know on which side the authors are going to come down. It made a great read for a long flight. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Health Care Delivery    2. Health Policy    3. Medical    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Medical care    6. Medicine, Preventive    7. Preventive Medicine    8. Public Health (General)    9. Public health    10. United States    11. Medical / Health Policy   

Subjects:  1. Data processing    2. Health Care Delivery    3. Health Care Policy    4. Health Policy    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Medical History & Records    8. Medical errors    9. Medical informatics    10. Medical records    11. Standards    12. United States    13. Health systems & services   

Reviews (1)

Really helpful
For people like me.Even if you have had no exposure to Excell before, by the end of the book, you will be able to complete difficult statistical analysis using the excell application.This include linear regression and matrix math.Dr. Veney uses real world health care examples to set up each task, and gives very good step by step instructions.In addition, the explainations given are written in basic english, and it often feels as if you are having a conversation with the author.Obviously statistics is still a difficult task for many, but this book does make it easier.I used it for class, and then found I actually pulled it out frequently during my work (in public health) to set up certain data and analyze them properly.My managers and bosses have always been surprised at my ability to compute- but really I am just using the set ups in this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Administration    2. Computer programs    3. Electronic spreadsheets    4. Health Policy    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Medical policy    8. Medical statistics    9. Spreadsheets - Excel    10. Epidemiology & medical statistics    11. Excel    12. Hospital administration & management    13. Medical / Administration   

Reviews (11)

market s in healthcare?
Herzlinger is a card-carrying member of the club that believes that markets can cure all social ills, and like all members of this club, she plays fast and loose with reality. For instance, she tries to present the vision market as an exemplar of how market forces can work in healthcare. Vision is one of the few areas of medicine where patients can appraise the value of the service, the quality of the provider, and make decisions about how much they are willing to pay. That is simply not the case when a patient is really sick with heart failure, and needs multiple medications, multiple doctors, and is probably going to be hospitalized repeatedly.
So she's no Tolstoy, but the ideas are great.
No one will accuse Ms. Herzlinger of being a great writer, but her conversational style is easy to read and she does have some good ideas for how the healthcare industry should be. Ideas that still haven't been implemented even now, 8 years after it was written. She does make a fairly convincing argument for how focused factories could reduce costs. In addition, suggestions that everybody should have health insurance, that healthcare providers should not be insulated from market forces, that consumers are the ones with the real power to stop the soaring healthcare costs, and that they'll only curtail spending when given incentive to do so are good points that can't be made often enough. Points that seem even more relevant today given the continued increase in healthcare costs, the inability of the HMO system to manage them, and the spiraling problem the growing uninsured population is creating (the more uninsured people there are, the more insurance costs, which increases the number of uninsured, etc.). She has good ideas, I think it's time people listened. It's of vital importance that the healthcare system incorporate what's great about America, what has made America a leader in every other industry: innovation and sensibly regulated free markets. Ms. Herzlinger gives us a good way to get it done. There is no "market" in American medical care, period.
Market forces cannot solve the medical crisis. No market exists. Knowledge of what is sold is inequivalent: if patients knew the difference between colonoscopy and colposcopy, they would not know the fair market value of either procedure. Unlike buying a car, where the dealer knows you can walk off, patients cannot negotiate, and can't determine the quantity of medical services needed. Eyeglasses constitute a misleading example. Physicians are the principal drivers of allexpenditure on medical care. Without a medical license, nothing can be ordered or prescribed. This fact must be faced squarely: the supplier of services regulates the level of demand for medical services. Annual outlays have now reached $1.6 trillion with no end in sight to the physician-driven escalation in expenditures. This is not COST inflation, but relentless EXPENDITURE INCREASE driven chiefly by an oversupply of medical doctors. If this system is ever to be fixed, these stubborn realities must be faced. This author evidently has no clue that there is not a "market" operating in the world of medical care delivery, thus her analysis is unhelpful. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business/Economics    3. Cost control    4. Health Care Administration    5. Health Care Issues    6. Health Policy    7. Health services accessibility    8. Industries - General    9. Marketing - General    10. Marketing Management    11. Medical care    12. Patient satisfaction    13. Politics / Current Events    14. Public Policy - General    15. United States    16. Emergency services    17. USA   

Reviews (1)

Access To Healthcare Should Not Be A Freemarket Perk
Along with many Americans I frimly believe in freemarkets providing goods and services to the American people. America is one of the wealthiest countries in the world because of our adherence to the freemarket system. However, our citizens rank near the bottom in health status. Americans have lower life expectancy, more health-related morbidity and higher adolescent death rates than most other advanced nations in the world and even some developing countries.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Equality    2. Health    3. Health Care Delivery    4. Health Policy    5. Health aspects    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Medical economics    8. Political Science    9. Politics/International Relations    10. Public Health    11. Public Policy - General    12. Social aspects    13. United States    14. Health systems & services    15. Political Science / Public Policy    16. Politics | American Politics | Public Policy    17. USA   

Reviews (1)

ESSENTIAL FOR THE STUDY OF ASKLEPIOS
Simply the most comprehensive book on Asklepios, the greek good of healing, available.Edelstein has every reference to the god in both the original and translation.For a serious scholar this is a holy grail, butfor someone without some familirity with the myth, this book might be alittle overwhelming. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Aesculapius (Greek deity)    2. Comparative Religion    3. Cult    4. Gothic & Romance    5. History    6. History Of Medicine    7. History: World    8. Literature - Classics / Criticism    9. Medical    10. Philosophy Of Medicine    11. Ancient Greece    12. History of ideas, intellectual history    13. Medical / Health Policy    14. Philosophy of science   

Reviews (11)

A chilling introduction to human / microbe interaction in the modern world
I was required to read this as part of my Intro to Microbiology course.I kept it on my bookshelf because it quickly became an invaluable resource.While it is obvious the author knows a lot about the subject material, the book itself is fairly easy to read, and has almost the elements of a page-turner at times.
A compelling read
I was turned on to the book by Mark's older brother, John Walters, who is executive director of the Lightstone Foundation, an environmental organization based in West Virginia. I was expecting a deary medical discourse for the mass consumer culture. What I got was a compelling read about critical problems facing and caused by our society.
A good, quick introduction to a very important field
This year it's the West Nile virus that's killing birds, horses and people for the first time where I live in Northern California. In the past year we've read about SARS appearing in China and jumping to cities around the world, about Mad Cow disease showing up here in the U.S., in Canada and in Japan, about the threat of a global flu epidemic, and of course we're all aware of the vast AIDS epidemic which continues to penetrate new populations in the industrialized world and which is devastating much of Africa.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Consumer Health    2. Diseases - Contagious    3. Ecology    4. Environmental Conservation & Protection - General    5. Environmental Health    6. Health Policy    7. Medical    8. Medical / Infectious Diseases    9. Public health & preventive medicine   

Subjects:  1. Government - U.S. Government    2. Health Care    3. Health Policy    4. Health care reform    5. Medical    6. Medical care    7. Medical policy    8. Politics / Current Events    9. Public Policy - Social Policy    10. United States    11. Health systems & services    12. Medical / Public Health    13. USA   

Subjects:  1. Health Policy    2. Medical   

Subjects:  1. Diet / Health / Fitness    2. Health & Fitness    3. Health Care Issues    4. Health Policy    5. Health/Fitness    6. Insurance, Health    7. Medical / Nursing    8. National health insurance    9. United States    10. Health & Fitness / Health Care Issues    11. USA    12. Welfare & benefit systems   

Reviews (1)

A Serious Look at a Problem of Our Time
With increased pre-natal genetic testing comes the knowledge to know of disabilities that the chile will face later. This book is a series of papers describing the ethical and social issues this raises. A second theme is a discussion of the quality of life for disable persons.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Abnormalities    2. Diagnosis    3. Ethics    4. Fetus    5. Health Policy    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Moral and ethical aspects    8. Perinatology & Neonatology    9. Prenatal diagnosis    10. Remote Sensing    11. Science/Mathematics    12. Social aspects    13. Technology    14. Materno-fetal medicine    15. Philosophy / General   

Reviews (5)

Readable and timely
This is an intellegently written synopsis of the current state of affairs in U.S. healthcare.Halvorson and Isham analyse the strengths and faults of the major attempts to bring the run away cost of health care into some affordable limits.They point out the strengths and weaknesses of each approach.They also have some suggestions for the future so we will not repeat the errors of the past. Epidemic of Care
Epidemic of Care provides a succinct overview of what presently ails our nations health care delivery system. It demonstrates how our health care delivery system is really a non-system with millions of independent, uncoordinated, and separately moving parts, priorities and vested interests. The result of this morass, more than forty million uninsured citizens, inconsistent and unaccountable care, and the fastest growing and most wasteful health care delivery economy in the world. Care Costs
We Americans are ambitious, aggressive, and full of self-interest. We want the best and the most, and we strive to achieve it. We are resourceful and clever, and we achieve a lot of what we set out to. Mr. Halvorson and Dr. Isham show how much we have accomplished in clinical science, especially in how doctors and institutions provide health care to individuals. But they also show how little regard we have to the financial cost of providing that care. They describe the fiscal and social trade-offs that occur in our medical economy all the time. Very few of us entrepreneurs, politicians, social leaders or patients are even minimally conscious of these costs. Reading this book will change how you listen to the next story about a premature baby or a liver transplant, and it ought to change how you think about the health care you consume. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Administration    2. Health Care Costs    3. Health Care Delivery    4. Health Care Reform    5. Health Policy    6. Health Services Accessibility    7. Medical    8. Medical / Nursing    9. Public Health    10. United States    11. Health systems & services    12. Medical / Public Health    13. USA   

Subjects:  1. Business / Economics / Finance    2. Economic aspects    3. Europe    4. Finance    5. Financial Management In Health Care    6. Health Care Issues    7. Health/Fitness    8. Industries - General    9. Medical Economics    10. Medical care   

Reviews (5)

too much rethoric about free market
this is very interesting book providing a huge amount of useful data about different health systemsin the world, although the presentation is scattered, irregular and according to the Authors` design, more than to a planned and rational description. Their interpretation of the data provided is not always acceptable. They use the old tactic of attributingsomething falseto the enemy to attack it. They create a "myth" about national health sysemswhcih nobody ever stated or believed and they used it to show the weakness of NHS. After completing the book I was even more convinced of the benefit of health systems such as those existing in Europe and in canada compared to the US. Their critique by the Authorsmight indeed beuseful in spotting theirlimitations ( obody says they are perfect) and correcting them

How Sould Health Care Be Funded And Distributed?
Is it the mess we have now, single-payer or something else? Health care and health insurance are not delivered effectively to all Americans in the framework of the free enterprise system. I am a big believer in the markets and the free enterprise system for most services and most products. However, health care and health insurance do not fit for many reasons in free markets. There must be a better way to be care for the health of our people.
Health Care in the Hands of Bureaucrats
There is little disagreement among stakeholders in the U.S. health care system--patients, insurers, physicians, policy analysts, and the like--that America's health care system must change to adjust to the twenty-first century. But what to do?
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Cross-cultural studies    4. General    5. Government - Comparative    6. Health Policy    7. Health care reform    8. Insurance - General    9. Medical    10. Medical policy    11. National health insurance    12. National health services    13. Politics / Current Events    14. Public Policy - Social Services & Welfare    15. Single-payer health care    16. Non-Classifiable    17. Welfare & benefit systems