A Death Retold

In February 2003, an undocumented immigrant teen from Mexico lay dying in a prominent American hospital due to a stunning medical oversight--she had received a heart-lung transplantation of the wrong blood type. In the following weeks, Jesica Santillan's tragedy became a portal into the complexities of American medicine, prompting contentious debate about new patterns and old problems in immigration, the hidden epidemic of medical error, the lines separating transplant “haves” from “have-nots,” the right to sue, and the challenges posed by “foreigners” crossing borders for medical care.This volume draws together experts in history, sociology, medical ethics, communication and immigration studies, transplant surgery, anthropology, and health law to understand the dramatic events, the major players, and the core issues at stake. Contributors view the Santillan story as a morality tale: about the conflicting values underpinning American health care; about the politics of transplant medicine; about how a nation debates deservedness, justice, and second chances; and about the global dilemmas of medical tourism and citizenship.Contributors:Charles Bosk, University of PennsylvaniaLeo R. Chavez, University of California, IrvineRichard Cook, University of ChicagoThomas Diflo, New York University Medical CenterJason Eberl, Indiana University-Purdue University IndianapolisJed Adam Gross, Yale University Jacklyn Habib, American Association of Retired PersonsTyler R. Harrison, Purdue UniversityBeatrix Hoffman, Northern Illinois UniversityNancy M. P. King, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillBarron Lerner, Columbia University Mailman School of Public HealthSusan E. Lederer, Yale UniversityJulie Livingston, Rutgers UniversityEric M. Meslin, Indiana University School of Medicine and Indiana University-Purdue University IndianapolisSusan E. Morgan, Purdue UniversityNancy Scheper-Hughes, University of California, BerkeleyRosamond Rhodes, Mount Sinai School of Medicine and The Graduate Center, City University of New YorkCarolyn Rouse, Princeton UniversityKaren Salmon, New England School of LawLesley Sharp, Barnard and Columbia University Mailman School of Public HealthLisa Volk Chewning, Rutgers UniversityKeith Wailoo, Rutgers University