Health Colonialism: Urban Wastelands and Hospital Frontiers

by Shiloh Krupar

The role of American hospital expansions in health disparities and medical apartheid

Health Colonialism considers how U.S. urban development policies contribute to the uneven and unjust distribution of health care in this country. Here, Shiloh Krupar investigates the racially inequitable effects of elite U.S. hospitals on their surrounding neighborhoods and their role in consolidating frontiers of land primed for redevelopment. Naming this frontier “medical brownfields,” Krupar shows how hospitals leverage their domestic real estate empires to underwrite international prospecting for patients and overseas services and specialty clinics. Her pointed analysis reveals that decolonizing health care efforts must scrutinize the land practices of nonprofit medical institutions and the liberal foundations of medical apartheid perpetuated by globalizing American health care.

110 pages, Paperback

Published March 28, 2023

Reviews

[rat · Rating 4 out of 5]

honestly did not know much about hospital land usage and colonialism at home and abroad before reading this book, really appreciated the way it challenged the commonly accepted idea that hospitals lead to public good and explained all the ways hospitals can create and maintain systems that do the opposite of promoting health. very informative

[Samantha Dickhut · Rating 5 out of 5]

brownfields, green imperialism, blight, eminent domain, biomedical complexes, the US healthcare system and climate change are all interconnected within the web of the US Empire. a must read.

[M Forsythe · Rating 5 out of 5]

while definetly an academic read I found this book absolutely fascinating as a disabled person constantly interacting with hospitals like these. officially shit talking johns hopkins forever. I'm grateful for all I learned in this tiny book!