ABSTRACT
Management consultants and business school professors advised American doctors, hospital administrators, and health care entrepreneurs in the late 20th century to make medical services more like Jiffy Lube stations. Business strategies and their market theories have infused their values into every sphere of society, permeating institutions and professions ostensibly dedicated to service. Medical delivery has long been a market in which buyers with financial means purchase services that sellers choose to offer. Examining the historical development of one medical specialty can reveal fundamental problems of specialty medicine itself and illuminate potential pathways for reform. Hospital radiology departments installing high-cost devices employed business modes of operation from the beginning. Ensuring safe and effective treatment is a public health as well as a medical responsibility. This introductory chapter presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of the book.
