Embracing Slow Medicine

Dr. Denis McCullough is a New Hampshire geriatrician who’s concerned with how millions of baby boomer families will deal with what he calls "the looming tsunami of elder care needs."

Modern medical interventions make unexpected death in one's sleep a rare event today. Families now care for their loved ones through months and even years of decline, often diminishing the quality of life for the patient, and putting distress on the family.

McCullough has written a new book, "My Mother, Your Mother," in which he advocates for a new model: slow medicine. McCullough joins Word of Mouth to talk about rejecting high-tech, industrialized, impersonal modern medicine in favor of family-centered care that is more compassionate and, frankly, more affordable.

(Photo by Sarah Murray)