Escape Fire: Designs for the Future of Health Care

I have just reread this wonderful collection of speeches in honor of the nomination of the author to head Medicare and Medicaid. I want to give a copy to everyone I know that works in health care as well as recommend it as one of the most interesting and moving books I can remember reading. The tying in of real life with the ongoing issues in providing quality health care in the U.S. makes this enjoyable to read, I would think, for anyone but particularly for those of us who have worked in and thought about our health care "system" over the years.

A wonderful book told with humility, intelligence, warmth, anger and knowledge. It presents the text of Don Berwick's annual talks at IHI's (Institute for Healthcare Improvement) National Healthcare Forum. This is a highly reccommended read if you work in healthcare. I don't know what others will think about this book.

Escape Fire is collection of compelling speeches by one of America's leading crusaders for health care quality and patient safety - Don Berwick, MD, founder and president of the Boston-based Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI.org). Each year, IHI hosts the National Forum on Quality Improvement in Health Care. The influential annual event draws 4,000 health care leaders from around the world in person and 6,000 via satellite. In many ways, Dr. Berwick's keynote lectures set the tone for quality improvement efforts across the US. With an effective blend of common sense, real-life stories, persuasive metaphors, and out-of-the-box thinking, Dr. Berwick's presentations make for fascinating reading for anyone interested in improving America's $1.7 trillion health care system.