The U.S. spends the most in the world on health care and research, yet our outcomes are among the worst in industrialized nations. Hundreds of thousands die every year from medical harm. Imagine a world where health care took a page from the IKEA furniture company---where expenses were streamlined, quality was predictable, customers participated, and everyone shared in the cost savings. Through colorful analogies, stories from families and top doctors, and the author's quest to find out what happened to her own father, Design to Survive serves up key strategies for patients, families and providers, with the conviction that we can do better.


Pat Mastors is a veteran news and medical reporter, creator of the ＂Patient Pod＂, a tool used in hospitals to improve medical outcomes, and a patient/family advisor to the federal Partnership for Patients. She was instrumental in passing new patient safety laws and has been quoted in USA Today urging an ＂all hands on deck＂ approach to improving medical outcomes.