A noted French ethnographer describes his care in a French private hospital for a hip replacement. He recounts a number of events that are probably typical of many patients' hospital experiences, but which clinicians often do not perceive. The observations are probably similar to those patients might make after exposure to any modern healthcare system, except that they offer a level of detail few would provide. The account focuses on the contradiction between excellent technical operations and the absence of compassionate patient care, basic civility and the needs of patient safety. It addresses marketing of hospital services, staffing levels, conflicts between private enterprise and medical need, fragmented billing, disconnected after-care, and the
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