'LifeLines': Public Health Advocate Dr. Leana Wen's Unique Journey

Tom's guest today is Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency room physician who is the former Health Commissioner of Baltimore, a columnist for the Washington Post, a professor of public health at George Washington University, a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a medical analyst for CNN. She is also the co-author of a book called When Doctors Don’t Listen: How to Avoid Misdiagnoses and Unnecessary Tests, published in 2013. She joins Tom today to discuss her new book, a critically acclaimed, important and timely reflection on her life, her career, and the state of public health in America. It’s part memoir and part prescription for elevating and improving public health. Leana Wen has long been one of this country’s most imaginative and innovative thinkers about public health policy; this book demonstrates the ways in which her masterful grasp of the pressing issues in public health is informed by a host of challenging personal experiences, a searing intellect, and unyielding compassion. It’s called Lifelines: A Doctor’s Journey in the Fight for Public Health. We are grateful to Dr. Leana Wen for having been such a wonderful friend of Midday for many years. She has shared her expertise and advice so generously and we are delighted to welcome her back to the show, via Skype, to talk about her new book. *** Dr. Wen and Tom Hall will talk more about the book this Thursday, Aug. 5th, beginning at 6:30pm, as part of the Enoch Pratt Library’s Writers Live series. WYPR is a media partner for this free, on-line event. For more info and to register, follow this link.Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.