The Medical Jungle: A Pioneering Surgeon's Battle to Revolutionize Vascular Care and Challenge the Medical Mafia

by Frank J. Veith MD, Glenn Plaskin

Overview

No matter your profession, The Medical Jungle will inspire you to have the courage to do what is right, even in the face of tremendous adversity. Join Dr. Frank Veith—one of America's most celebrated vascular surgeons—as he illustrates that while your environment may feel like a fierce jungle, unwavering conviction can tame the elements.

Part captivating memoir, part exposé of a self-serving system, The Medical Jungle unveils numerous behind-the-scenes stories from an often opaque industry and recounts Dr. Veith's tireless efforts to improve medical care for patients. With wisdom garnered from a seventy-year journey as a pioneering surgeon, Dr. Veith pulls back the curtain on the inner workings of innovative medical procedures, while candidly describing the self-interested parties that sought to either block or take credit for his progress. Always going against the grain for the greater good, Dr. Veith's perseverance and determination will inspire anyone in any profession fighting the good fight.

The New York Times calls Dr. Veith "an unlikely radical," and this inspirational book will motivate anyone who faces adversity at any level to stand up—to be radical—even when it is unpopular.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781637552629
Publisher:	Amplify Publishing
Publication date:	02/07/2023
Pages:	296
Sales rank:	447,554
Product dimensions:	8.25(w) x 5.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

FRANK J. VEITH, MD, is one of America's leading vascular surgeons, a pioneering creator of life- and limb-saving medical advances, and the chairman of VEITHsymposium—the largest vascular surgery conference in the world. He currently serves as a professor of surgery at NYU and the Cleveland Clinic.

At various times in a career spanning more than half a century, Dr. Veith has been a leader in every national and international vascular society. He has authored or co-authored more than 900 articles in medical journals. He has received numerous honors, including the Society for Vascular Surgery Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2013, an endowed chair was established in his honor at NYU.

Dr. Veith is a graduate of Cornell and completed his surgical residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard. He lives in New York with his wife, Carol.

Celebrity interviewer and columnist Glenn Plaskin is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-five books, specializing in memoir, business, self-help, leadership, and inspiration.

Editorial Reviews

"The Medical Jungle describes Dr. Veith's journey in a surgeon's world. It reveals that passion, hard work, and self-belief can overcome resistance to improve medical care. Sadly, it also confirms that necessary changes in medical practice cannot take place if those who are the custodians of change benefit from the status quo. This is a must-read book for all doctors and the public!" —PROFESSOR SIR PETER R. F. BELL, past president of the European Society of Vascular Surgery

"The Medical Jungle is a courageous and honest portrait of a passionate leader and a visionary vascular surgeon. It is a must-read for anyone trying to meaningfully affect any field and build a lasting legacy." —SIMONA ZANNETTI, MD, vice president of clinical research and medical science, peripheral vascular heath, Medtronic

"Dr. Veith is an icon in academic surgery and a visionary vascular surgery leader. The Medical Jungle vividly portrays his personal persistence to get his innovative contributions accepted as well as his important decades-long fight to establish vascular surgery as a recognized discipline." —DR. HAZIM J. SAFI, founding professor and chairman of the department of cardiothoracic and vascular surgery at McGovern Medical School, University of Texas, in Houston

"The Medical Jungle is compelling both as a fascinating chronicle of a remarkable medical career and a picture of the inner workings of the medical establishment and its failure to allow for change both in medical practice and regulation of the profession." —G. OLIVER KOPPELL, former attorney general of New York

From the Publisher

2022-12-05
A surgeon shares the story of his personal and professional life.

In this memoir, Veith (with co-author Plaskin) looks back on his decades of work in vascular surgery, reflecting on his contributions to the field, the changes it’s undergone, and the politics of the health care industry. The book follows a chronological path from Veith’s childhood, his decision to pursue medicine, his 1950s military service and early medical training, and his years at New York City’s Montefiore Medical Center, where he spent most of his long career. The surgeon describes the techniques he and his team developed to improve the success of lung transplants, minimize the need for amputations, and extend the reach of vascular surgery. The book also details his unsuccessful crusade to establish vascular surgery as its own medical specialty; his role as a mentor, with several junior colleagues sharing their stories of working for him in brief essays; and his efforts to share knowledge through an annual symposium. An appendix includes the full text of several papers and speeches mentioned in the main text. The book owes its title to Veith’s assessment of his employers, professional associations, and the medical community as an environment in which good work can be accomplished and collegiality can be found but where it’s equally possible to get caught up in infighting and self-interest. Although the word prestigious,in reference to institutions, grants, and publications, is distractingly overused, the author comes across as a generous collaborator, describing his colleagues’ contributions in detail and making it clear that his successes were group efforts. Readers with medical backgrounds will appreciate Veith's vibrant, detailed descriptions of medical procedures, but nonspecialists will also find it easy to follow. Veith effectively tells a story that encompasses dramatic advances in the medical field over decades while also taking a cleareyed look at the industry’s challenges.

An engaging and evocative medical memoir.

Kirkus Reviews