Interview with Mark Manley

On healthcare, community priorities, and the work of the Center for Respite Care

Tell me a little about yourself.

“I am a Cincinnatian. I was born in Texas — my dad was in the military at the time — but I’ve lived here pretty much my whole life. I started practicing anesthesia at Christ Hospital 34 years ago. I have four kids and three grandchildren right now, so that’s the basic storyline.”

How did you start to work with the Center for Respite Care?

“My first wife passed away from cancer when she was 40, and it struck me that I had an opportunity to see medicine and medical care in a different light. I also became very cognizant of the fact that too many people in America struggle to get full access to medical care and healthcare.

“That experience led me to become aware of places like the Center for Respite Care that are trying to provide the kind of healthcare people need who don’t have access to it because of their current living conditions and economic conditions.

“At the time — and I believe it is still true — most of the patients came to the Center for Respite Care through a local hospital system after a recent hospital admission.”

How long were you involved with the Center?

“I was on the board for about 12 years, and I served as board chair for a little over a year.”

What are your community priorities?

“My interest in how medical care and healthcare are delivered has led me, over the past decade, to become more engaged in the governmental process because that’s the best pathway for improvement.

“Springboarding from my involvement with the Center for Respite Care, was getting involved with the Charter Committee of Cincinnati, and I’ve been on that board for several years. From there, I became a board of trustee’s member for the Mayerson Good Government Foundation, which provides funding to efforts for good government processes.

“My major focus has been both within my medical career and outside of it — trying to improve how healthcare and medical care are delivered in the community.”

What do you think about the current state of healthcare delivery?

“It’s a tremendous struggle.

“First, let me differentiate how I see medical care and healthcare. Medical care is expensive, and it probably should be. It involves hospitals, doctors, nurses, highly trained individuals, and highly technical equipment that helps treat patients who are acutely ill with complex disease states.

“But healthcare doesn’t have to be expensive.

“Healthcare is housing, food, access to basic medical care, and access to pharmaceuticals that are necessary to maintain health. Unfortunately, our country historically has willingly paid for medical care and unwillingly paid for healthcare.

“And unfortunately, healthcare is the cheaper and more successful way to keep society healthy.

“I think until we tackle that challenge, we’re always going to struggle.”

Are there places in the world doing this better?

“I’ve had an opportunity to look at other countries — England and Canada being the most obvious ones people talk about.

“I think where we are far worse off compared to countries that have attempted a universal healthcare system is that those countries provide a very basic safety net that allows people to not go bankrupt simply because they’ve had a substantial medical event.

“It does not seem difficult for us to try to match what most first-world nations have done in providing universal basic medical care.”

Give me your thoughts and impressions on the Center for Respite Care.

“What I find appealing and impactful about the Center for Respite Care is that it engages with an admittedly small segment of people currently experiencing homelessness, but it identifies a segment of that population who can be re-entered into a housed situation where they have access to some of what we refer to as basic healthcare — housing, food, and safety.

“That’s the thing that’s most appealing: the success in identifying people who are currently experiencing homelessness and helping those who are willing and able to move into a much safer home situation.”

Is there anything else you would like to add?

“As a physician at Christ Hospital, I’ve also been very appreciative of the support the Christ Hospital network has provided to the Center for Respite Care.

“In the end, not only do patients benefit from the Center for Respite Care, but so do the hospital systems in the region. Christ Hospital and other healthcare networks have recognized that and appreciated it.”