In 1983, Dr. David Hilfiker left his practice in rural Minnesota and began to practice poverty medicine in a ravaged community not far from the Whi...
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reviews
Jan 18, 2010
Helen
rated it: 
I really enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to anyone interested in working with "the poor," or really anyone interested in the topic. It addressed a lot of the issues/concerns I have and that I've heard other physicians talk about in their work with the homeless. While I didn't always agree with his decisions it was refreshing to read about someone else's experiences with goverment agencies and his own limitations laid out so honestly. One thing I do have to say was a li
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Jan 16, 2010
One reason I like this book enough to grant five stars is because of Hilfiker's candor when writing about his inner struggles and limitations. He doesn't take the tough topics and tough questions that he tackles and give nicely-packaged, end-of-discussion answers to the reader. Instead, his discussions freely expose his limitations in understanding social justice and the world of the poor, highlighting times when he hypocritically contradicted himself, for example. It gives the sense that he is
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Dec 06, 2008
Personal deconstruction of privelege of being white physician working with urban underserved communities of color. Written preAIDS epidemic, in like 1982 or something.
Mar 17, 2007
Julie
rated it:
this book really spoke to me because i had gone through many of the same struggles as this doctor who practices "poverty medicine". working in health care in any capacity in medically underserved communities requires special skills and perspectives that are vastly different from practicing medicine in a privileged community. it was helpful to read this book because hilfiker did a nice job of putting words to some of the feelings that i had had working as a health educator on chicago'
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Nov 15, 2010
Lily
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I'm so glad this book was recommended to me. I underlined at least 5 or 6 passages that verbalized some of the thoughts I've been having about my work over the past months. Granted, I'm not a doctor, but the "poverty medicine" Dr. Hilfiker writes about is something that many people in the "helping professions" end up practicing. It's a pretty personal book about this particular doctor's experiences, but there are definitely some universal lessons to be learned -- I may have t
Dec 17, 2009
Megan
rated it:
this book opened my eyes to what a hard, unjust society we live in here in America. Dr. Hilfiker chose to take the path less traveled, and brought his family along for the struggles and triumphs of working in a health clinic in one of the nation's poorest neighborhoods...which happens to be within a 5-mile radius of our nation's capital. shocking, and not one to sugar-coat, Hilfiker's journey will give you a different perspective.
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