Includes bibliographical references and index

The office -- Going to the doctor -- The lay of the land -- From the outside in -- The march of time, 1965-2015 -- The hospital -- Entering the palace of technology -- The varieties of hospital experience -- The hospital through other eyes -- The transformation of the American hospital, 1965-2015 -- The skilled nursing facility -- Going to rehab -- Different SNFs, different miffs -- Movers and shapers -- Now and then

"Since the introduction of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965, the American health care system has steadily grown in size and complexity. Muriel R. Gillick takes readers on a narrative tour of American health care, incorporating the stories of older patients as they travel from the office to the hospital to the skilled nursing facility, and examining the influence of forces as diverse as pharmaceutical corporations, device manufacturers, and health insurance companies on their experience"--