by Marty Makary
First published 2012
Healthcare operates as an opaque system where patients cannot see the dangers lurking within hospital walls. Surgeon Marty Makary, who helped create the medical checklist featured in Atul Gawande's work, draws from his experience at top hospitals to reveal a disturbing pattern of preventable mistakes. Surgical instruments get left inside patients. Wrong limbs face amputation. Poor handwriting leads to fatal overdoses in children. Despite technological advances, medical errors persist at alarming rates while costs continue climbing. Makary argues that this crisis stems from a fundamental lack of accountability within healthcare institutions. Doctors and hospitals operate without transparency, shielding incompetent practitioners and systemic problems from public scrutiny. The author presents a solution rooted in market forces and patient empowerment. By demanding transparency and creating accountability measures, patients can drive meaningful reform across the medical establishment. This book equips readers with insider knowledge to navigate healthcare decisions and advocate for systemic change.
Genres: medical, non-fiction, health, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: insider-knowledge, investigative-journalism
256 pages · Hardcover · Bloomsbury Press
Content warnings: medical-trauma