Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Pages: 304
•
978-1-4422-2596-1 • eBook • September 2014 • $50.00 • (£38.00)
John Leifer worked for more than 30 years with the major factions comprising healthcare delivery in the United States, including some of the nation’s leading hospitals. Most recently, he served as a senior vice president for a 10-hospital system in the Midwest. Leifer founded and published The Leifer Report, a healthcare publication that featured contributors ranging from President Bill Clinton to Newt Gingrich. He has written extensively on healthcare issues and has been published in newspapers and magazines, such as Modern Healthcare, Hospitals & HealthNetworks, Washington Monthly, and The Kansas City Star. Leifer has also been profiled in several prominent magazines, including Money and Fortune.
Introduction
Myth 1: The United States boasts the best health care in the world.
Myth 2: Shopping for health care is like shopping for a car: You base your decisions on good information.
Myth 3: Medical interventions are based upon scientific evidence of positive outcomes regarding best practices. As a result, patients receive precisely the care they need.
Myth 4: Where one chooses to receive care will have no bearing on their treatment options, outcomes, or cost.
Myth 5: All physicians are created equal.
Myth 6: There’s no better place to be when you are ill than the hospital.
Myth 7: The prescription I was given is safe, proven, and effective.
Myth 8: I’m just the patient. I’m not part of the problem.
Myth 9: My insurance company’s first concern is my health.
Myth 10: When all else fails, at least the system will allow me to die with dignity.
Epilogue
Bibliography
Policy makers and industry leaders should read the book for Leifer’s big-picture view of the issues.
— The Kansas City Star
Perhaps the greatest merit of . . . [this] book is the hope that they will create meaningful discussions among those less intimately familiar with the health care system, flaws and all. Additionally, the [book] will speak to those caring for an elderly family member. The [book does] serve a valuable purpose. Readers of this journal may want to [give this as a gift] to those less well versed in health care. They explain what must seem an odd reluctance on the part of those more deeply immersed in health care to scrutinize health-related recommendations and to rethink the inclination to seek treatment for every risk or condition.
— Health Affairs
In this profoundly important book, John Leifer exposes the underbelly of American medicine—the greed, arrogance, and failures that permeate our health care system at all levels. A must-read for those of us receiving care, as well as those giving it, The Myths of Modern Medicine will open every consumer’s eyes and alert providers that we are on to their less-than-stellar practices. But Leifer does not just expose the problems; he offers viable and realistic solutions including steps consumers can take to protect themselves from shoddy medicine. This is a must-own book for anyone interested in their health care and those who provide it.
— Charles B. Inlander, consumer health advocate, best-selling author, commentator and founding president of the People’s Medical Society
John Leifer's book identifies and then destroys comfortable, commonly held beliefs about the effectiveness of the US healthcare system. [It is] a provocative must read for anyone interested in improved system outcomes and their own well-being. This passionate contribution should reignite an overdue post Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) conversation. While addressing the 'truths' of the system, the author offers a handy, comprehensive guide to assist consumers in taking affirmative steps to improve their own health and healthcare outcomes.
— Roderick L. Bremby, former secretary, Kansas Department of Health and Environment
White House officials argue that healthcare in the United States is very sick. They have created a bloated bureaucracy tasked with addressing its problems. Just in the nick of time, John Leifer's new book, The Myths of Modern Medicine, comes along and identifies not only the foundational myths obscuring the true nature of our health system's illness but a more pragmatic and less expensive solution...dealing with the real issues. Precisely the book we have long needed. Easy to read, hard to take, but just the treatment we needed and just in time!
— Richard Hastings, president and CEO emeritus, Saint Luke's Health System