Health systems and services Books

Book SynopsisThis book examines transparency in the health context, including the many ethical and legal issues it raises. It will appeal to anyone interested in how transparency can transform existing health care policy frameworks, from the pharmaceutical industry, to Big Data, to concerns around patient privacy protections.Table of ContentsIntroduction Carmel Shachar, I. Glenn Cohen, Holly Fernandez Lynch and Barbara J. Evans; Part I. Transparency in Health and Health Care: Thematic Issues: Introduction Abigail R. Moncrieff; 1. Smashing into windows: 'the limits of consumer sovereignty in health care' Barry R. Furrow; 2. The interplay of privacy and transparency in health care: the HIPAA privacy rule as a case study Barbara J. Evans; 3. Transparency tradeoffs: priority-setting, scarcity, and health fairness Govind Persad; 4. Slightly hazy: transparency and the costs of too much information Oliver J. Kim; Part II. Transparency and Informed Consent: Introduction Luke Gelinas; 5. Transparency versus informed consent: the patient/consumer paradigms Craig J. Konnoth; 6. Transparency and financial conflicts: the uncertain case for sunshine Richard S. Saver; 7. Making religion transparent: the substance, process, and efficacy of disclosing religious restrictions on care Elizabeth Sepper; Part III. Transparency and Economics: Health Care Costs and Billing: Introduction Kristin M. Madison; 8. Transparency on prescription drug research expenditures: a lever for restraining pricing? Ameet Sarpatwari, Jerry Avorn and Aaron S. Kesselheim; 9. Is pharmaceutical price transparency an effective means to reduce high prices and wide variations? Marc A. Rodwin; 10. Price transparency: a contracts solution Wendy Netter Epstein; 11. Solving surprise medical bills Mark A. Hall; Part IV. Transparency and Innovation: Introduction Holly Fernandez Lynch; 12. Increasing the transparency of FDA review to enhance the innovation process Rachel E. Sachs and Thomas J. Hwang; 13. Transparency and clinical trial data sharing: legal and policy issues Barbara E. Bierer, Mark Barnes and Rebecca Li; 14. The European Medicines Agency's approach to transparency Stefano Marino and Spyridon Drosos; Part V. Transparency and Outcomes: Promoting Health and Safety: Introduction Gregory Curfman; 15. The role of transparency in promoting healthy behaviors: pros, cons, and perils of information sharing to foster personal responsibility in health care Anthony W. Orlando and Arnold J. Rosoff; 16. The role of transparency in patient safety improvement Michelle M. Mello, David M. Studdert, Brahmajee K. Nallamothu and Allen Kachalia; 17. Personal health records as a tool for transparency in health care Sharona Hoffman; 18. Nontransparency in electronic health record systems Jim Hawkins, Barbara J. Evans and Harlan M. Krumholz; 19. Transparency challenges in reproductive health care Dov Fox; Part VI. Challenges in Promoting and Measuring Transparency in Health Care: Introduction I. Glenn Cohen; 20. ERISA as a barrier for state health care transparency efforts Erin C. Fuse Brown and Jaime S. King; 21. Transparency and data sharing in clinical research and Big Pharma Jennifer E. Miller; 22. Promoting IRB transparency: about what, to whom, why, and how? Holly Fernandez Lynch; 23. Using disclosure to regulate PBMs: the dark side of transparency David A. Hyman and William E. Kovacic.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis new edition of Interprofessional Working: An Essential Guide for Health and Social Care Professionals provides the underpinning theoretical and practical knowledge all undergraduate nursing and healthcare students will need to learn how to successfully communicate and work effectively as part of an integrated, interprofessional team. As part of the topical Nursing and Health Care Practice series, this highly accessible text offers a host of practice based, real-life scenarios to show theory in practice along with a real life case studies, boxed features and new activities to develop critical thinking and understanding.Trade ReviewChapter 1 - Introduction - The key concepts of interprofessional working Chapter 2 - The context of interprofessional working Chapter 3 - Teams, teamwork and team dynamics Chapter 4 - Leadership and expertise Chapter 5 - Communicating with each other Chapter 6 - Interprofessional learning within a practice context Chapter 7 - Barriers to effective interprofessional working Appendix 1 -Rapid recap answersTable of ContentsChapter 1 ��� Introduction ��� The key concepts of interprofessional working Chapter 2 ��� The context of interprofessional working Chapter 3 ��� Teams, teamwork and team dynamics Chapter 4 ��� Leadership and expertise Chapter 5 ��� Communicating with each other Chapter 6 ��� Interprofessional learning within a practice context Chapter 7 ��� Barriers to effective interprofessional working Appendix 1 ���Rapid recap answers

Read more less

Book SynopsisGuide and organize the evolution of your clinical laboratory students from beginners into effective professionals by giving them this invaluable resource, Essentials of Clinical Laboratory Science. This resource fosters critical thinking beyond just the basic procedures, creating a thorough awareness of the clinical laboratory responsibilities that students will have to themselves, to their patients, and to the facilities where they work. Coverage includes the organization of health care facilities, the laws and regulations that govern them, and common tasks and responsibilities for the numerous professional categories that comprise the health care industry. Safety for the laboratory employee, the patients, and the visitors are explained in detail. With an emphasis on efficiency, accuracy, and professionalism, this book serves up the essential ingredients for a holistic approach to laboratory science that augments the diagnosis and treatment of all patients.Trade ReviewPreface. For Whom is This Book Written?.Why This Book Was Written. About the Author. Organization of the Textbook. History of the Laboratory. Laboratory Duties and Professionalism. Organization of the Health Care Facility and the Laboratory. Accreditation of Facilities and Personnel Certification. Laboratory Economics Laboratory Mathematics. Quality Assurance. Safety in the Laboratory and Patient Areas. Infection Control. Clinical Laboratory Procedures 1. History and Development of Medical Laboratory Science. 2. Laboratory Personnel Credentialing and Facility Accreditation. 3. Medical Law, Ethics and Moral Issues of Healthcare. 4. Hospital and Laboratory Organization. 5. Laboratory Safety. 6. Introduction to Infection Control. 7. Medical Economics and Laboratory Equipment. 8. Pipetting and Use of Glassware. 9. Laboratory Mathematics. 10. Quality Assurance. 11. Phlebotomy. 12. Procedures for Urinalysis and Body Fluids. 13. Hematology and Coagulation. 14. Clinical Chemistry. 15. Microbiology. 16. Immunology and Serology. 17. Immunohematology (Blood Banking). Glossary. Appendix A: States and Territories Having Laboratory Personnel Licensure Requirements. Appendix B: Medical Terminology for Laboratorians. Appendix C: Accrediting Agencies and Professional Societies. Appendix D: Review Question Answers.Table of ContentsPreface. For Whom is This Book Written?.Why This Book Was Written. About the Author. Organization of the Textbook. History of the Laboratory. Laboratory Duties and Professionalism. Organization of the Health Care Facility and the Laboratory. Accreditation of Facilities and Personnel Certification. Laboratory Economics Laboratory Mathematics. Quality Assurance. Safety in the Laboratory and Patient Areas. Infection Control. Clinical Laboratory Procedures 1. History and Development of Medical Laboratory Science. 2. Laboratory Personnel Credentialing and Facility Accreditation. 3. Medical Law, Ethics and Moral Issues of Healthcare. 4. Hospital and Laboratory Organization. 5. Laboratory Safety. 6. Introduction to Infection Control. 7. Medical Economics and Laboratory Equipment. 8. Pipetting and Use of Glassware. 9. Laboratory Mathematics. 10. Quality Assurance. 11. Phlebotomy. 12. Procedures for Urinalysis and Body Fluids. 13. Hematology and Coagulation. 14. Clinical Chemistry. 15. Microbiology. 16. Immunology and Serology. 17. Immunohematology (Blood Banking). Glossary. Appendix A: States and Territories Having Laboratory Personnel Licensure Requirements. Appendix B: Medical Terminology for Laboratorians. Appendix C: Accrediting Agencies and Professional Societies. Appendix D: Review Question Answers.

Read more less

Book SynopsisBoth comprehensive and accessible, this is an ideal resource for anyone who plans to teach or practice integrated, cost-effective healthcare in the 21st century.Currently, there is no coordinated system for training health-profession students to address the needs of patients with complex illnesses, nor is there a coordinated system for effectively delivering care to these patients. This book explores both sides of the problem, bringing interprofessional practice and education together to show how they are complementaryand how they can be integrated to provide better care.In many respects, this book is a personal account of the authors'' experience with interprofessional teamwork and education over the past 40 years. It discusses what works and what doesn''t and includes interviews, examples, and case studies that illustrate the perspectives of healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers. This second edition illuminates ways in which today''s business model has changed int

Read more less

Book SynopsisData is more valuable than ever in the twenty-first century, and tremendous amounts of data are being generated every second. With a fast-growing information industry, engineers are required to develop new tools and techniques that increase human capabilities of mining useful knowledge from the vast amounts of data.Optimized Genetic Programming Applications: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential reference source that explores the concept of genetic programming and its role in managing engineering problems. It also examines genetic programming as a supervised machine learning technique, focusing on implementation and application. As a resource that details both the theoretical aspects and implementation of genetic programming, this book is a useful source for academicians, biological engineers, computer programmers, scientists, researchers, and upper-level students seeking the latest research on genetic programming.

Read more less

Book SynopsisPopulation aging is a growing challenge worldwide. As such, new models of provision, organization, and allocation of resources, particularly in healthcare, are needed. As the self-care and long-term care needs of this age group become more prevalent, the importance of improved health services and effective health management strategies are apparent.The Handbook of Research on Health Systems and Organizations for an Aging Society provides emerging research exploring the challenges and opportunities for the development and management of health systems and organizations in relation to people aged 65 and over. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as emotional wellness, long-term care, and professional caregiving, this book is ideally designed for health technicians, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospital administrators, clinical directors, laboratory technicians, medical professionals, researchers, and students.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisIncreased use of artificial intelligence (AI) is being deployed in many hospitals and healthcare settings to help improve health care service delivery. Machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) tools can help guide physicians with tasks such as diagnosis and detection of diseases and assisting with medical decision making. This edited book outlines novel applications of AI in e-healthcare. It includes various real-time/offline applications and case studies in the field of e-Healthcare, such as image recognition tools for assisting with tuberculosis diagnosis from x-ray data, ML tools for cancer disease prediction, and visualisation techniques for predicting the outbreak and spread of Covid-19. Heterogenous recurrent convolution neural networks for risk prediction in electronic healthcare record datasets are also reviewed. Suitable for an audience of computer scientists and healthcare engineers, the main objective of this book is to demonstrate effective use of AI in healthcare by describing and promoting innovative case studies and finding the scope for improvement across healthcare services.Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction to AI in E-healthcare Chapter 2: The scope and future outlook of artificial intelligence in healthcare systems Chapter 3: Class dependency-based learning using Bi-LSTM coupled with the transfer learning of VGG16 for the diagnosis of tuberculosis from chest X-rays Chapter 4: Drug discovery clinical trial exploratory process and bioactivity analysis optimizer using deep convolutional neural network for E-prosperity Chapter 5: An automated NLP methodology to predict ICU mortality CLINICAL dataset using multiclass grouping with LSTM RNN approach Chapter 6: Applying machine learning techniques to build a hybrid machine learning model for cancer prediction Chapter 7: AI in healthcare: challenges and opportunities Chapter 8: Impression of artificial intelligence in e-healthcare medical applications Chapter 9: Heterogeneous recurrent convolution neural network for risk prediction in the EHR dataset Chapter 10: A narrative review and impacts on trust for data in the healthcare industry using artificial intelligence Chapter 11: Analysis of COVID-19 outbreak using data visualization techniques: a review Chapter 12: Artificial intelligence-based electronic health records for healthcare Chapter 13: Automatic structuring on Chinese ultrasound report of Covid-19 diseases via natural language processing

Read more less

Book SynopsisIntersex' is the condition whereby an individual is born with biological features that are simultaneously perceived as male and female. Ranging from the ambiguous genitalia of the true 'hermaphrodite' to the 'mildly or internally intersexed', the condition may be as common as cleft palate. Like cleft palate, it is hidden and surgically altered, but for very different reasons. This important book draws heavily on the personal testimony of intersexed individuals, their loved ones, and medical carers. The impact of early sex-assignment surgery on an individual's later life is examined within the context of ethical and clinical questions. Harper challenges the conventional and radical 'treatment' of intersexuality through non-consensual infant sex-assignment surgery. In doing so she exposes powerful myths, taboos, and constructions of gender - the perfect phallus, a bi-polar model of gender and the infallibility of medical decisions. Handling sensitive material with care, this book deepens our understanding of a condition that has itself only been medically understood in recent years.Trade ReviewThis is an exceptional book for an audience that could desperately use an informed, sympathetic and understanding voice. If I knew someone who was struggling with their intersex condition or someone who wanted to know how others have experience and dealt with their intersex condition, Catherine Harper's Intersex would be at the top of my list of recommended readings. - The Journal of Sex ResearchTable of Contents1. Introduction 2. The 'Mythological Hermaphrodite' 3. Louise's Story and Others 4. David's Story and Diamond's Recommendations 5. Ade's Story 6. Sarah-Jane's Story and Others 7. Changes in Standards of Care? 8. Lorna, Jessie, Sal and Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia 9. Joanne, Helen, Sue and Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome 10. Severe undervirilization in genetic males 11. 'Hermaphroditism' and Gonadal Dysgenesis 12. Sex chromosome variations: Klinefelter's Syndrome 13. Sex chromosome variations: Turner Syndrome 14. Conclusion Appendix 1. Correspondence and Interviews Appendix 2. Societies and Advocacy Groups Bibliography [183]

Read more less

Book SynopsisTo maximise the effectiveness of their work, NHS employees need a clear understanding of the structures and systems of the organisation in which they work. However, this information can be widely spread, hard to access and difficult to gain a working overview of, and the pace of changes and initiatives can seem almost dizzying. This book draws together a clear picture of the modern NHS, from funding and governance to reports, inquiries and overarching legislation. The book is clear and easy to understand and crucially includes full references to provide a one-stop point of access to the most detailed and up-to-date information available. This book is essential reading for workers in the NHS at all levels, including managers, administrators and clinical professionals. It is vital reading for managers and staff at commercial companies working with the NHS. It will also be of interest to campaigners, patient interest groups, researchers and journalists with an interest in the NHS. Specialty registrars and consultants can also find the information from the book, and much more, in The Doctor's Handbook Parts 1 & 2, by the same author. 'Rather than long narrative histories or complex explanations, the author signposts readers to sources of further information, making this book the quick guide so many of us need' - from the Foreword by Sir Ian CarruthersTable of ContentsUnderstanding the NHS. Clinical governance and quality. The future. Funding and the NHS. Acts, Circulars, Reports and Inquiries.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis major new reader has been put together by Physicians for Social Responsibility in Finland, a member of IPPNW, the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, the recipient of the Nobel Prize in 1985. Comprising 70 articles, specially commissioned for this volume and written by leading authorities in their field, it provides an unusually wide-ranging examination of the interface between warfare and human health and society. In a world where the post-cold war era has proved a profound disappointment as regards any diminution in the incidence of armed conflict, this up-to-date and comprehensive source book will prove invaluable to health professionals and social scientists as well as those active in human rights, peace and development.Trade Review'When people are in danger, everyone has a duty to speak out. This book is a good example. Here the health profession shows its expertise in a responsible way. I hope their book can help us to change our way of thinking as well as our way of acting.' Kofi Annan, Secretary General, United Nations 'Medical textbooks too often neglect the consequences of war to human health: it makes this book all the more important.' Gro Harlem Brundtland, Director-General, WHO Once more we owe a debt of gratitude to the medical world. This time it is due to the Finnish 'Physicians for Social Responsibility'. Their new publication, War and Health, is an encyclopaedia of peaceful information about war - its history, its weaponry, its destructiveness, its consequences for civilians and the environment and current hopes for its eventual abolition. A very useful resource book for all who are serious about peace.' Bruce Kent, The International Peace BureauTable of Contents Preface - Secretary General Kofi Annan, United Nations Introduction Part I: Historical View 1. Medicine against war - a historical review of anti-war activities of physicians - Christian Jenssen 2. The image of war in medical journals - a case study - Lauri Vuorenkoski, Ilkka Taipale, Vappu Taipale 3. Impact of warfare on medicine - Matti Ponteva 4. Problems of assistance and protection in modern conflicts - Gunnar Rosén 5. Changing character of war - Arto Nokkala 6. Military medicine - Matti Ponteva Part II: Different Arms Systems Conventional weapons 7. Antipersonnel weapons - Eric Prokosch and Ernst Jan Hogerndoorn 8. Small arms - Michael Renner 9. Anti-personnel landmines - Ian Maddocks Weapons of mass destruction 10. Chemical weapons - Julian P Perry Robinson 11. Biological warfare - how serious a threat? - P Helena Mäkelä 12. Health effects of the military use and testing of nuclear weapons - Kati Juva 13. Atomic bomb casualty, experiences from Hiroshima and Nagasaki - Masao Tomonaga 14. Nuclear terrorism - Frank Barnaby New technology15. Non-lethal weapons - Nick Lewer Part III: Health and the Social Effects of Warfare Demographic effects 16. Morbidity and mortality among soldiers and civilians - Douglas Holdstock 17. The effects of wars on population - Anna Sillanpää Effects on health care 18. The health and social consequences of diversion of economic resources to war and preparation for war - Victor W Sidel and Barry S Levy 19. Case report: Health and war: Mozambique - Abdul Razak Noormahomed and Julie Cliff 20. Case report: Post-war health and health care in Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mauno Konttinen 21. Case report: Warfare and health: the case of West Africa - Kolawole T Raheem and Kingsley K Akinroye Vulnerable groups 22. Children and war - Vappu Taipale 23. Children's responses to the threat of nuclear war - Tytti Solantaus 24. Case report: Croatia - Paul Stubbs 25. Women as victims - Eva Isaksson 26. Rape - the female body as a symbol and a sign, gender-specific violence and the cultural construction of war - Ruth Seifert 27. Frontlines of mental health under war conditions - the case example of Former Yugoslavia - Søren Buus Jensen 28. The underprivileged, elderly, mentally ill and handicapped in the war - Klaus Doerner After the war 29. War-injured veterans getting old - Leo Jarho 30. War veterans - Risto Hyvärinen 31. Past trauma persisting in the present: the survivors of earlier war time trauma in old age - Linda Hunt Part IV: Social Structures in Connection with Wars 32. Arms trade and perceptions of security - Thomas A Cardamone 33. Psychological theories on aggressive behavior - Laura Pakaslahti 34. Language, communication and discourse - Paul A Chilton 35. The media in postmodern war and terrorism - Tapio Varis 36. War and alcohol - Jussi Simpura 37. Case report: Education for conflict resolution: a contribution to peacekeeping in the Republic of Macedonia - Violeta Petroska-Beska Part V: War and Environment 38. Conventional warfare and the human environment - Arthur H Westing 39. Case report: Military Pollution - nuclear waste: Sailing directions classified - Alexander Yemelyanenkov and Andrei Zolotkov 40. Case report: Nuclear pollution in the former USSR - Sergei Kolesnikov and Alexander Yemelyanenkov 41. Case report: Military pollution - chemical waste - B.B.Bondarenko, L.G.Kasyanenko, Ye.N.Rose and O.N.Simonova 42. Case report: Gulf War Illnesses: role of chemical, radiological and biological exposures - Garth L Nicolson, Nancy L Nicolson, Joerg Haier and Marwan Nasralla 43. Case report: Kosovo war - first environmental impact assesment - Pekka Haavisto Part VI: Prevention and Management of Wars International regulatory activities 44. The laws of Geneva and the Hague - Gunnar Rosén 45. From Nuremberg to the International Criminal Court - Martin Scheinin 46. Defensive security - Saul Mendlovitz and Merav Datan 47. Nuclear weapons elimination: strategies for overcoming the political deadlock - Merav Datan, Brian Rawson and Lars Pohlmeier 48. The World Court Project - Kate Dewes and Robert D Green 49. Conflict monitoring - Jennifer Leaning, Jonathan Fine and Richard Garfield 50. Globalization: Expanded opportunities to prevent regional and global conflict through negotiation, mediation and preventive diplomacy -William W Monning 51. The role of international organizations - does the United Nations still matter? - Meri Koivusalo 52. International Red Cross - Jari Pirjola and Pär Stenbäck 53. Defence restructuring and conversion - Jussi S Jauhiainen 54. Humanitarian assistance to countries at war - an exercise in futility? - Hannu Vuori 55. Case report: Forensic medical investigations in Kosovo - Kari Karkola Civilian efforts for peace 56. Trust building among nations in conflict through medical actions: the case of the Middle East - Ernesto Kahan 57. World religions - world peace - world ethic - Hans Küng 58. Stubborn peace: communities that refuse to fight - Mary-Wynne Ashford Different non-governmental associations 59. Pugwash - Tom Milne 60. A brief history of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War - Michael Christ 61. Médecins Sans Frontières - Terhi Heinäsmäki 62. Physicians for Human Rights - Jonathan Fine and Susannah Sirkin 63. Amnesty International - research, documentation and action for human rights - James Welsh 64. Operation Handicap International - Hanna Tapanainen 65. International Peace Research Association - Unto Vesa

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe NHS pension scheme is the largest in Europe. This guide explains how it works and how to maximize its benefits and avoid its pitfalls. The book covers: recent changes to the scheme including new provisions for early retirement; personal pensions, financial planning and investment options; advice on preparing for retirement and working after retirement; state benefits; and health and leisure in retirement. It is written for all NHS staff and should be of particular value to GPs and salaried doctors.Table of ContentsAn overview of evidence-based management * Managing the job * Using information and knowledge * Are we doing a good job? * Improving decision making * Learning to practise evidence-based management * Organisational culture * In conclusion

Read more less

Book SynopsisAbout this book This concise book is aimed to assist candidates for the Royal College of Physicians MRCP PACES exam. The exam consists of 5 stations, each of which is scored on 7 different skills. This book also caters to medical students and junior doctors, who wish to learn the art of correct clinical examination. This book takes the reader through all of the clinical stations in order, detailing the required clinical examination for each station and describing appropriate communication skills. "There is a plethora of publications to help candidates prepare for written higher examinations in medicine but few that deal with modern clinical examinations. This book meets that need and fills the gap in current provision for aspiring physicians working towards their formal qualifications." Stephen Allen BSc MD FRCP MBA, Consultant Physician and Visiting Professor, The Royal Bournemouth Hospital, UK. About the author Dr. Deepa Iyer is a physician who is passionate about medicine and enjoys teaching the correct clinical examination skills to medical students and junior doctors who are keen to learn. Having successfully passed the MRCP PACES exam herself, she was unable to find a clinical examination book helping doctors through this new examination format. Drawing upon her own experiences, Dr Deepa Iyer has produced this small but essential book to guide the candidate through the exam.

Read more less

Book SynopsisLean Thinking for Emerging Healthcare Leaders: How to Develop Yourself and Implement Process Improvements aims to solve the issues in modern day healthcare by handing over the reins of the improvement process to healthcare professionals. Putting those who are doing the work and are closest to the actual situation in the lead. The purpose of this book is to help you understand how to develop yourself and your leadership in such a way that will best benefit your team and your patients. This includes change management practices that will help to build commitment with your team members, colleagues, management, patients, and other stakeholders. This book educates you, as a leading medical professional, in the principles and values of Lean leadership and management. It will teach you how to improve healthcare from the inside, making it safer, better, faster, more accessible, and more affordable. With this book we want to inspire, motivate, and stimulate you to lead continuous improvement—while being respectful to people—on your way to ideal care for every patient. The primary target audience for the book are medical professionals who have (recently) acquired leadership, management, or business responsibilities. The book will also be of high value to those who obtained temporary leadership positions, like project leaders, problem solvers, change managers, and innovators. Because most of the teachings in the book are meta skills and ways of thinking, the book is easily relatable and transferable to other disciplines and even sectors.

Read more less

Book SynopsisExplore real women’s tales of healthcare trauma and medical misogyny with this “masterfully written” (Sophia A. Nelson, bestselling author of The Woman Code and Black Woman Redefined), meticulously researched, in-depth examination of the women’s health crisis in America—and what we can do about it.When Anushay Hossain became pregnant in the US, she was so relieved. Growing up in Bangladesh in the 1980s, where the concept of women’s healthcare hardly existed, she understood how lucky she was to access the best in the world. But she couldn’t have been more wrong. Things started to go awry from the minute she stepped into the hospital, and after thirty hours of labor (two of which she spent pushing), Hossain’s epidural slipped. Her pain was so severe that she ran a fever of 104 degrees, and as she shook and trembled uncontrollably, the doctors finally performed an emergency C-section. Giving birth in the richest country on earth, Hossain never imagined she could die in labor. But she almost did. The experience put her on a journey to explore, understand, and share how women—especially women of color—are dismissed to death by systemic sexism in American healthcare. Following in the footsteps of feminist manifestos such as The Feminine Mystique and Rage Becomes Her, The Pain Gap is an “eye-opening” (Christy Turlington Burns, founder of Every Mother Counts) and stirring call to arms that encourages women to flip their “hysteria complex” on its head and use it to revolutionize women’s healthcare. This book tells the story of Hossain’s experiences—from growing up in South Asia surrounded by staggering maternal mortality rates to lobbying for global health legislation on Capitol Hill to nearly becoming a statistic herself. Along the way, she realized that a little fury might be just what the doctor ordered. Meticulously researched and deeply reported, this “must-read” (Soraya Chemaly, author of Rage Becomes Her) book explores real women’s traumatic experiences with America’s healthcare system—and empowers everyone to use their experiences to bring about the healthcare revolution women need.

Read more less