A groundbreaking medical memoir by one of our nation's leading pediatric surgeons - the visionary head of Children's National.
Kurt Newman, MD, is president and CEO of Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., widely recognized as one of the nation's best pediatric hospitals. Dr. Newman has been a surgeon at Children's National for over thirty years and is a professor of surgery and pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences. He helped create the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, dedicated to making children's surgery pain free and less invasive. A strong advocate for the expansion of mental health treatment access for kids, he is actively involved in improving pediatric health nationally through his work on the boards of the Children's Hospital Association and Safe Kids Worldwide. He and his wife Alison are the parents of two college age sons and live in Bethesda, Maryland.
“Newman captures the beautiful collegiality of pediatric medicine
and the wisdom of parents and of children themselves, as in this
description of a young patient with intestinal failure: 'He thought
more about his parents’ suffering than his own. As a human being,
he put me to shame…' The kids he describes are themselves heroic...
Newman, a pediatric surgeon, argues that seriously ill and injured
children are better served at pediatric hospitals than at adult
hospitals — a claim generally supported by the data showing that
kids with bone fractures, brain injury and severe sepsis do best
when pediatric specialists manage their care.” – The New York
Times
“Kids’ resilience, both physical and emotional, is at the heart of
this illuminating and wise book by one of America’s foremost
pediatric surgeons.”
--People, "12 Best New Books"
“If you did nothing but read the astounding, miraculous and
occasionally crushing stories that Dr. Newman so vividly relates
about daily life in a pediatric hospital you would be enthralled
by Healing Children. But there is a bigger truth to this
book, a more compelling reason to read it. And that is to
acknowledge not only the courage of young patients and pediatric
physicians alike, but to be brought face to face with the many ways
that we don’t prioritize children’s health. That with the vast
resources of this country, pediatric hospitals are few and far
between, pediatricians are generally underpaid and, most of all,
research dollars are hard to come by. Healing
Children is an amazing look at the tenacity and courage of
kids and doctors under difficult circumstances. But it is
also a cri de coeur for prioritizing the health and well-being of
our youngest and often our most vulnerable citizens- our
children.”
-- Madeline Levine, Ph.D. author of The Price of Privilege and
Teach Your Children Well
“Kurt Newman is passionate about caring for children as children,
not just scaled-down versions of adults: advocating for letting
parents into recovery rooms, and realizing that to a preteen the
prospect of a noticeable scar may be as scary as surgery itself.
He’s concerned that seriously ill children are too often treated by
specialists with little pediatric experience. And he worries that
America’s children are competing for a limited pool of health-care
funds with an ever-growing population of seniors and disabled
adults…Healing Children makes an emotional case for the importance
of 'child-specific' medical treatment. The book is composed of
individual, highly detailed stories of mentors, treatments, case
studies and especially the young patients themselves, for whose
courage and resilience he has boundless admiration.”
– Washington Post
“In this deeply moving and personal book, Kurt Newman shares the
inspiring stories of the children he has treated and reveals what
he has learned from them. In the tradition of Jerome Groopman and
Atul Gawande, he helps us to learn about medical issues while
feeling the emotions of real-life situations. Healing
Children includes a lot of practical advice for parents, but
it is a book for everyone who cares to understand the beauties and
mysteries of health.”
--Walter Isaacson, bestselling author
of Einstein and Steve Jobs
“Healing Children brings Dr. Newman’s interactions with children
and families to life while poignantly sharing how they impacted his
career, his leadership and his humanism. As a pediatric
emergency physician, I identify with his insights into the lives of
children and families. Kurt celebrates children and what they teach
us every day in the practice of the noble field of medicine.”
– Karen Remley, MD, MBA, MPH , FAAP, Professor of Pediatrics,
Eastern Virginia Medical School
"As a parent who has seen Dr. Newman at work, both as a surgeon on
our young son and as CEO of one of the top children's hospitals in
the country, I know this book comes from the heart. It is a great
testament to the importance of the doctor-patient relationship and
really tells us what families really need to know. With this moving
memoir full of personal stories, Dr. Newman illuminates the
importance of caring for the youngest among us. We can all learn
from that journey."
-- Brett Baier, Chief Political Anchor, Fox News Channel and
bestselling author of Special Heart: a Journey of Faith, Hope
Courage and Love
"Newman, president and CEO of the highly rated Children’s National
Medical Center in Washington, D.C., knows how to hook a reader . .
. He makes a compelling case for giving more resources to the
'painfully undervalued and underfunded' field of children’s
medicine in a society that prioritizes adults and end-of-life care
. . . As the nation tries to figure out how best to spend limited
health-care dollars, it’s helpful to consider Newman’s strong
argument for giving kids a fair share.”
--ALA Booklist
“With nearly 40 years of experience, Newman, a veteran surgeon,
liberally shares a variety of personal stories and case histories
from children in his clinical practice. He laments that pediatric
medicine is 'painfully undervalued and underfunded' while adult
diseases garner the majority of the attention, financial support,
and clinical investments within the American medical community. To
illustrate the need to re-evaluate how children's medicine is
perceived and to reprioritize its importance, the author introduces
readers to some of the brave, resilient children he has treated
throughout his coming-of-age surgical residencies and his
long-standing tenure in pediatric medicine. He also spotlights many
pioneering medical professionals who continue to be committed to
the betterment of treating and healing ill children... Newman cites
heart-rending instances of genetic abnormalities, cancer, severely
underweight babies, and overprotective parents, all briskly
described yet carrying the emotional weight that accompanies an
innocent child enduring a painful health crisis. Written primarily
as a guide for parents navigating the unpredictable health of their
children, the book also addresses the future of pediatric care, as
Newman delves into the most innovative therapies and initiatives in
development. As the current CEO of Children's National in
Washington, D.C., the author sets forth a convincing argument to
place children's medical requirements and their need to thrive well
into adulthood at the forefront of American medicine, and he admits
that 'these kids have been my real teachers.' …Newman's
compassionate approach hits the heart and soul of these unique
experiences. A genuine and inspiring chronicle of a doctor fighting
the good fight."
--Kirkus Reviews
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