"Through twenty years of clinical practice...Dr. Fisher has seen firsthand how our country's healthcare system can reflect the worst of society: treating the poor as expendable in order to provide top-notch care to a few. In The emergency, Fisher brings us through his shift, as he works with limited time and resources to treat incoming patients. And, with the rare dual perspective of somebody who also has his hands deep in policy work, Fisher connects these human stories to the sometimes-cruel machinery of care"--Provided by publisher.