Glenn Ellis penned "Information Is The Best Medicine" because he saw a widening gap between what medicine can do and what patients understand.
And that gap cuts across racial, ethnic, economic, and age lines.
He also realized 80% of America's healthcare spending is for chronic diseases, which can be controlled, but aren't.
In his book - Ellis explains everything from chemotherapy to sciatica pain to hair loss - all in laymen's terms, because he doesn't think people are getting this easy-to-understand information from their doctors.
"We are talking about people who are deeply and highly educated to become doctors - 12, 14, 16, 18 years- non-stop. so their focus is laser focused on absorbing this information. and in the process, many of them either never develop, or lose the people skills they have," Ellis says.
Ellis nearly became a doctor, studying at the University of Pennsylvania medical school on a scholarship, but left, disilusioned by the disparity in care. He has pursued many other avenues in healthcare, and for the last 15 years, has written a column on medical issues for the Philadelphia Tribune.
He says Americans should be getting everything they can out of their healthcare dollars.
"Although the United States is 5% of the population, we are responsible for 56% of all the pharmaceuticals consumed in the world," notes Ellis.
Good healthcare begins with having a good relationship with your doctor.
"If you don't have a relationship, maybe you have the wrong doctor. Do the due diligence to find the right person," he says.
Ellis also has a chapter explainining the power structure in hospitals, to help readers get the best care there.
He says it isn't just consumers who can learn from his book.
"It is equally as important and useful to patients, consumers and lay people as it is to doctors, and nurses and other medical professionals," he says.
For more information on Glenn Ellis, or his book, check out glennellis.com.
