Eugene Braunwald and the Rise of Modern Medicine

By narrating the life story of renowned cardiologist and medical leader Eugene Braunwald, Lee (medicine, Harvard Univ.) examines how shifting trends in American society and medicine shaped the ways physicians conducted research, gained entrance into the profession, and dealt with the changing nature of health-care funding. In so doing, he shows the impact that these changes had on one of America's most prominent doctors. A German Jew, Braunwald came to the United States after the Nazis rose to power. He eventually went on to do groundbreaking research in cardiology at the National Institutes of Health; help found a medical school at the University of California, San Diego; and then join the faculty at Harvard Medical School. Braunwald also helped create the Partners Health System in Boston, which united some of Boston's hospitals in a single health-care organization. Most important, this book provides a firsthand account of medical research and how unexpected events and challenges can shape one's career and contributions to society.