Book Club

One of the age-old questions on human behavior is why we do the things we do. Are our habits ingrained, and if so, how do we break the behavioral cycles they produce? Investigating these and other questions is Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, whose work takes readers to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Hosted by Dr. John Russell.

San Francisco's Laguna Honda Hospital is the last almshouse in the country, a descendant of the Hôtel-Dieu (God's Hotel) that cared for the sick in the Middle Ages. Ballet dancers and rock musicians, professors and thieves - "anyone who had fallen, or, often, leapt, onto hard times" and needed extended medical care - ended up there. Dr. Victoria Sweet ended up there herself, as a physician. And though she came for only a two-month stay, she remained for twenty years.

God's Hotel tells the story of a hospital, which - as efficiency experts, politicians, and architects descended, determined to turn it into a modern "health care facility" - revealed its truths about the cost and value of caring for body and soul.

A maddened creature, frothing at the mouth, lunges at an innocent victim and, with a bite, transforms its prey into another raving monster. It's a scenario that underlies our darkest tales of supernatural horror, but its power derives from a very real virus, a deadly scourge known to mankind from our earliest days. In this fascinating exploration, journalist Bill Wasik and veterinarian Monica Murphy speak with host Dr. John Russell about the history, science, and cultural mythology of rabies as described in their book "Rabid."

Matthew Miller had just pedaled up a mountain pass. He was 20, a member of the University of Virginia triathlon club, so fit his resting pulse was 42! He was on top of the world in so many ways, in love, with dreams of attending medical school. And then, cycling along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia, tragedy struck. The real story is not what happened, but what happened after.

Host Dr. John Russell is joined by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Michael Vitez to share the humbling story of Matt's survival and recovery. The author first chronicled Matt Miller's story for his newspaper, The Philadelphia Inquirer. The response from readers was so overwhelming - and Matt's continued recovery so remarkable - that Vitez immersed himself in Matt's world. The Road Back is not only about a young man's drive to reclaim his life, but about the people who rode with him, rescued him, helped him heal, and saw up close his amazing comeback.

An extraordinary yet almost unknown chapter in American history is revealed in this extensively researched exposé by author Matthew Algeo. On July 1, 1893, President Grover Cleveland boarded a friend's yacht and was not heard from for five days. During that time, a team of doctors removed a cancerous tumor from the president's palate along with much of his upper jaw. When an enterprising reporter named E. J. Edwards exposed the secret operation, Cleveland denied it and Edwards was consequently dismissed as a disgrace to journalism. Twenty-four years later, one of the president's doctors finally revealed the incredible truth, but many Americans simply would not believe it. After all, Grover Cleveland's political career was built upon honesty-his most memorable quote was "Tell the truth"-so it was nearly impossible to believe he was involved in such a brazen cover-up. "The President Is a Sick Man" is the first full account of the disappearance of Grover Cleveland during that summer more than a century ago. Dr. John Russell hosts this fascinating conversation with author Matthew Algeo.

Medicine and spirituality have always been linked, we have struggled as a profession with how to introduce spirituality and religion into the general hospital setting. Host Dr. Leslie Lundt discusses such a program with Dr. Mark Galanter, professor of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine, and author of Spirituality and the Healthy Mind: Science, Therapy and the Need for Personal Meaning.

Better technology and treatments mean that people with serious childhood illnesses such as cystic fibrosis and type one diabetes are reaching adulthood in unprecedented numbers. That means they are also struggling with college, relationships, fertility and employment. Laurie Edwards, a health journalist and author of Life Disrupted, joins host Dr. Leslie Lundt to discuss these issues.

Hear Steve McKee, author of the book, My Father's Heart: A Son's Journey, as he discusses why it was so difficult for him to make the decision to take a statin for his heart disease.

Steve McKee's paternal grandfather died of a heart attack at age 53, his father died of a heart attack at age 50 and he discovered he had heart disease at the age of 52. Hear author Steve McKee as he discusses his experience with heart disease in his book, My Father's Heart: A Son's Journey.

How much do you know about the woman who first identified the cancer-causing effects of X-rays in pregnancy? British physician Dr. Alice Stewart was persecuted professionally and financially for her unpopular research. Dr. Gayle Greene, Professor of Literature and Women’s Studies at Scripps College, Claremont, California and author of The Woman Who Knew Too Much, joins host Dr. Leslie Lundt to discuss Alice Stewart’s life.