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Hospital: Man, Woman, Birth, Death, Infinity, Plus Red Tape, Bad Behavior, Money, God andDiversity on Steroids | 
 enlarge | Author: Julie Salamon
Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $15.50
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Avg. Customer Rating:  20 reviews
Sales Rank: 17683
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.4
ISBN: 1594201714
Dewey Decimal Number: 362.110974723
EAN: 9781594201714
ASIN: 1594201714
Publication Date: May 15, 2008
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| • | Audio Download - Hospital (Unabridged) | | • | Audio CD - Hospital: Man, Woman, Birth, Death, Infinity, Plus Red Tape, Bad Behavior, Money, God and Diversity on Steroids | | • | Audio CD - Hospital: Man, Woman, Birth, Death, Infinity, Plus Red Tape, Bad Behavior, Money, God and Diversity on Steroids | | • | Audio CD - Hospital: Man, Woman, Birth, Death, Infinity, Plus Red Tape, Bad Behavior, Money, God and Diversity on Steroids | | • | Kindle Edition - Hospital |
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Product Description
A bestselling author and award winning journalist follows a year in the life of a big urban hospital, painting a revealing portrait of how medical care is delivered in America today
Most people agree that there are complicated issues at play in the delivery of health care today, but those issues may not always be what we think they are. In 2005, Maimonides Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, unveiled a new state-of-theart, multimillion-dollar cancer center. Determined to understand the whole spectrum of factors that determine what kind of medical care people receive in this country, bestselling author Julie Salamon spent one year tracking the progress of the center and getting to know the characters who make the hospital run. Located in a community where sixty-seven different languages are spoken, Maimonides is a case study for the particular kinds of concerns that arise in institutions that serve an increasingly multicultural American demographic. Granted an astonishing warts and all level of access by the hospital higher-ups, Salamon followed the doctors, patients, administrators, nurses, ambulance drivers, cooks, and cleaning staff. She explored not just the action on the groundwhat happens between doctors and patientsbut also the financial, ethical, technological, sociological, and cultural matters that the hospital community encounters every day.
Drawing on her skills as interviewer, observer, and social critic, Salamon presents the story of modern medicine, uniquely viewed from the vantage point of those who make it run. She draws out the internal and external political machinations that exist between doctors and staff as well as between hospital and community. And she grounds the science and emotion of medical drama in the financial realities of operating a huge, private institution that must contend with issues like adapting to the specific needs of immigrant groups that make up a large and growing portion of our society.
Salamon exposes struggles of both the profound and humdrum variety. There are bitter internal feuds, warm personal connections, comedy, egoism, greed, love, and loss. There are rabbinic edicts to contend with as well as imams and herbalists and local politicians. There are system foul-ups that keep blood test results from being delivered on time, careless record keepers, shortages of everything except forms to fill, recalcitrant and greedy insurance reimbursement systems, and the surprising difficulty of getting doctors to wash their hands.
This is the dynamic universe of small and large concerns and personalities that, taken together, determine the nature of our care and assume the utmost importance. As Martin Paysonchairman of the board at Maimonides and ex-Time-Warner vice chairmanputs it: Hospitals have a lot in common with the movie business. Youve got your talent, entrepreneurs, ambition, ego stroking, the business versus the creative part. The big difference is that in the hospital you dont get second takes. Movies are make-believe. This is real life.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 15 more reviews...
 A great read August 26, 2008
I have always been fascinated by hospitals and reading this book allowed me to indulge my fascination. It basically depicts a year in the life of the administrators, doctors, social workers, and other personnel at a very busy Brooklyn hospital. Salamon depicts these characters so vividly, you'd think she was writing a novel. Her subjects definitely come alive on the page.
The primary function of the book is to depict the complexities of running a hospital. The secondary function is to depict the relationship between the hospital and the community it serves, which is traditionally centered on orthodox Jews. Thus, the book is also a fascinating study of orthodox Judaism, at least as lived out in Brooklyn. The area surrounding the hospital is increasingly multicultural (e.g., Chinese, Pakistani) and Salamon also does a great job of depicting these cultures with both clarity and sensitivity.
I have only a few caveats about the book. Much of its focus is on the hospital's cancer center, so it is very "heavy" reading material. It will have you thinking a lot about your own mortality. In no way is it a beach or bedtime read.
There is also a small section of the book concerned with "partial birth" abortion. I thought that it could have been more objective. (It seems clear from reading the section that Salamon is pro-choice, though she spares no gruesome detail in describing the procedure.)
Overall, though, I recommend this book. It packs a lot of interesting material into a reasonable number of pages. It will be a read you won't be able to put down.
Julie Salamon's Hospital August 25, 2008
Hospital is an amazing book, both as an stand-alone story and a exercise in the art of story telling. You'll enjoy "Hospital" if you enjoyed Salamon's "The Devil's Candy," only instead of experiencing juicy, morbid fascination via a Hollywood bomb, you'll experience a new sense of admiration for hospital workers and the author's talent.
In the beginning, I wondered whether it was possible for someone to bring a hospital to life. They're big, lifeless institutions that lack the drama and personality of similar organizations like a big business (Apple) with a rich history, right? Gay Talese was able to create magical stories about the Brooklyn Bridge and the New York Times, but he's Gay Talese. People loved those books and they helped form the foundation of his reputation. In my opinion, Salamon has reached that level as a storyteller with "Hospital." This is not an easy, cut-and-paste story. She pulls it off and proves she can write well about anything. Anything.
A great non- fiction book makes people do more than read to the end. With this one, I found myself searching out the origins of Hasidic vs. Orthodox Jews, and googling image after image of the characters. I HAD to see what Pam, Dr. Astrow and the others looked looked like.
Salamon became a word doctor, someone able to give life to what I considered to be nothing more than a lifeless institution. Anyone in the health care industry will relate to the travails, and those of us outside it will find a very informative snapshot into this world. As for Salamon, reading this story is like seeing Lenny Kravitz perform live; it's witnessing someone who was born with a gift and using it.
a glimpse into our healthcare system August 18, 2008
A great read. not only does this book give us an insiders look at healthcare in new york, but also shows us the struggles of new immigrants, and the problems that are facing our hospitals dealing with different languages and cultures. I think Ms. Salamom is a gifted writer and at the end of the day, you really beleive that everyone is trying to do the right thing, inspite of the red tape, bad behavior, money god and yes, diversity on steroids. Kudos to maimonides for allowing this to happen and giving us this wonderful opportunity to learn something new.
 hard to read August 17, 2008
Although I was fascinated by the subject - having had relatives in the hospital, and I know many of the people mentioned, I found the book very hard to read.
There was no unifying theme, the book jumped from one subject to another. There was not a compelling narrative nor story line.
I was very disappointed!!
Boring August 17, 2008
Do not buy this book. It makes patients look like a mass of whining, ungrateful people. Everyone from doctors to administration to hospital workers range from cynical to dissatisfied. Based on this book I would never go to this hospital.
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