83. Brian Alexander on The Hospital: Life, Death and Dollars in a Small American Town

On the new episode of Prognosis Ohio, Dan Skinner talks with author Brian Alexander about his new book, The Hospital: Life, Death and Dollars in a Small American Town. Topics include the state of the American health care system, with a particular focus on consolidation, inequality, and the relationship between hospitals and the economic and cultural lives of Americans, particularly in small towns and cities.

From St. Martin’s Press:

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.

Prognosis Ohio recommends that you purchase The Hospital from a local, independent bookstore. In Central Ohio, we recommend either Prologue Bookshop (Columbus) or Gramercy Books (Bexley). If you wish to order online, we support Bookshop.org.

You can read more about Brian Alexander on his website. You can also follow him on Twitter.

Episode hosted and produced by Dan Skinner with editorial and production assistance from Claire McGee

Prognosis Ohio is part of the WCBE Podcast Experience and a member of the Health Podcast Network.

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