In this episode of Hear Tell, Diana Keough talks with University of Georgia law professor and 2023 UGA MFA graduate Elizabeth Chamblee Burch about her new book, The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers, and Rogue Doctors Fuel America’s Lawsuit Factory.

Part investigative journalism and part legal exposé, The Pain Brokers takes readers inside the hidden world surrounding transvaginal mesh litigation — a sprawling system of telemarketers, mass tort lawyers, questionable medical practices, and billion-dollar settlements built around women searching for relief from chronic pain.

Kirkus Reviews described Beth’s book as “a clarion call for reform and change.”

In their conversation, Diana and Beth discuss how Beth organized such a large and complicated story, how she approached writing fairly about deeply flawed characters, and the care she took to preserve the dignity of the women at the center of the book — women whose suffering had already been exploited for profit. They also talk about the challenge of translating dense legal and medical material into narrative nonfiction that remains deeply human at its core.

The Pain Brokers is available wherever books are sold. 

For more information about Elizabeth and her work, visit her website: https://www.elizabethchambleeburch.com/