Hospital Stay Handbook: A Guide to Becoming a Patient Advocate for Your Loved Ones

Hospital Stay Handbook is a necessary read for anyone who is unfamiliar with how the hospital and medical system really works. It is an inside guide to ensuring quality care for you and your loved ones. Having been one of the health care professionals who assisted in the care of Jari's husband, Bill, I am keenly aware of the circumstances from which the book was written and am inspired by the amount of knowledge the book imparts. As a voice of advocacy for patients, Jari's efforts are unparalleled. Raise the bar for hospital-based patient care by educating yourself -- this book is the perfect primer.

Jari Buck has authored a book that enables the family of a patient to potentially make a most significant difference in the outcome of the loved one. The text imparts good common sense, as well as needed encouragement to step up to the bat and participate. A serious illness can generate overwhelming fear and depression, which of course, makes it difficult for someone to become engaged in the process of healing. Yet, problem solving and just helping out when the staff is stretched too thin can work miracles. Just try...and if you're lacking in ideas, please read Jari Buck's book. Holly Fritch, M.D. Leawood, KS

Jari's book is an excellent guide for anyone who has, or will someday, endure a hospital event. I have a husband, a son, and a Grandmother who have all recently experienced hospitalizations. The advice in her book changed the way I interacted with hospital staff and pushed us to make sure our legal documents were in order. My husband and I have Durable Medical Power of Attorney forms -- make sure this is in your arsenal of highly important legal documents. Jari's book will make you cry, make you mad, but hopefully wake you up to the grim fact that advocacy is going to have to be one of your new skills if you have a loved one in the hospital.

Jari saw her husband go through hell over several months, including "dying" several times. She saw dedicated healthcare professionals who did only a fair and sometimes poor job coordinating his treatment because of the way the system works. She learned from first-hand experience that the patient's family or a hired advocate needs to act quickly and regularly to ensure that the right treatment occurs at the right time in the right way. I know because I was there, too. Jari has done a masterful job of capturing her experience and the lessons learned from it in her timely and critically-important book. Read it now...so you're ready when the unpredictable time comes!

Jari Holland Buck has an innate ability to communicate practical guidance and instruction to simplify complex issues. Her history with the health care field in supporting her husband through his life threatening illness has given her a special insight that she now shares with everyone in her book, Hospital Stay Handbook. I have no doubt that the guidance Jari provides will benefit many lives to come.