The Cost of Care: How Four Nurses Put Patients First in a Profit-Driven System

Theresa Brown worked as a oncology nurse for years before finally burning out, but instead of leaving the healthcare system behind entirely, she set out to find places where it's actually working. She embedded with nurses in four key areas of care that cover the human lifespan—a maternity center in Pittsburgh, a primary care facility in Portland, an elder care home in Denver, and hospice services in the midwest and in Connecticut—and came back with gripping, and often deeply moving, on-the-ground stories of patient-centered care. Taking us into the daily lives and the exhausting yet rewarding shifts of these four practitioners, Brown gives readers a rare window into what kinds of healthcare facilities are actually doing things well, taking care of patients, keeping things affordable, and supporting staff.

Even as the system feels like it's crumbling around us, Brown reveals scalable solutions and reminds us that there's still hope—all through the eyes of the people we know keep the whole thing running: nurses.