A Plastic Surgeon’s Warning: Why Healthcare Rewards Treatment, Not Health

Why does the United States spend more on healthcare than ever before while chronic disease continues to rise?In this episode of Surgeon Interrupted, Frances Mei sits down with reconstructive plastic surgeon Dr. Joshua Mirrer to explore the systems behind modern healthcare. From residency burnout and preventive medicine to agriculture, economics, chronic disease, and the incentive structures shaping American health, this conversation goes far beyond the operating room.Dr. Mirrer shares how his experiences in surgical training led him to study the larger forces influencing health outcomes, and why he believes meaningful change will require both individual action and community-level solutions.Topics include:Why healthcare is built around treating disease rather than preventing itThe rising cost of chronic illness in AmericaHow food systems and healthcare incentives intersectThe role of community in improving health outcomesLessons from diabetes prevention programsWriting, medicine, and making sense of complex systemsWhat surgeons can teach us about long-term thinkingIf you've ever wondered why healthcare feels broken, or what it might take to fix it, this conversation offers a thoughtful place to start.Host: Frances Mei Hardin, MDGuest: Joshua Mirrer, MDConnect with Joshua: http://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-mirrer-ab27436bhttps://substack.com/@jmirrerPresented by: The Hippocratic CollectiveFollow Frances Mei on Instagram & Tiktok @francesmeimdAnd subscribe to ⁨@HippocraticCollective⁩ on Youtube for all of the other shows the Hippocratic Collective has to offer.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jun 9, 2026

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A Plastic Surgeon’s Warning: Why Healthcare Rewards Treatment, Not Health

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