The Whistleblower: Confessions of a Healthcare Hitman,   ISBN:9781933368399

Customer Rating: 

You know how when you pick a book up in a book store, the first thing you usually do is turn it around and read the back cover, and there, usually you will see a short summary of the book's contents along with a compilation of quotes from positive reviews by newspapers, authors, etc. about the very book you're holding in your hand?

Well, when I received my copy of The Whistleblower last Friday, I did just that- read the quotes on the back cover- before diving into the text of the book itself. There are four quotes on there, one from the New York Times, one from the New York Post, one from Rahm Emmanuel, and one from an anonymous message board poster. OK, 3 out of 4 ain't bad....

I tell you this because as I read this meager little 200 page dandy over the next two days, I realized that all four of those quotes were actually used in the text of the book as part of the story. In other words, when Peter Rost, at the time a Pfizer executive, started to speak out publicly in favor of re-importation of drugs, he got some attention from the media and politicians. And they said nice things about him without really even knowing his story. And he refers to those nice things in the text of his book. And his publisher presents those nice things he heard people say about him on the back cover of the book as though they were positive reviews of the book.

So, I feel a little mislead. But hey, just cause they market the book in a less than honest way doesn't discredit this guy's story, right? Right. But there are a couple of details of Rost's actual story that made me a bit skeptical of his motivations for writing the book, and for speaking out in support of drug re-importation.

First of all, he says he doesn't want to comment directly on his law suit against Wyeth, which was his first whistleblowing incident (though he insinuates they "fired" him for whistleblowing activity). Wait... Hold the phone... You're a whistleblower, writing a book about yourself called The Whistleblower, and you don't want to talk about the whistleblowing? I realize there may be legal ramifications for writing about the case directly, but thats not an excuse for only faintly describing events that are absolutely essential to the story you're writing.

(*I put "fired" in quotation marks because the name of the chapter is "You're Fired!" But he didn't get fired, he got transferred from Sweden to Philadelphia, where his new office was stuffy and malodorous. He doesn't say he got demoted either, although he sneakily puts a New York Times quote in there saying he did get demoted, even though that was probably a reporting error. The point is, Rost is very selective about his terminology describing this incident, but he is trying to give the reader the impression that he got fired... which he didn't.)

Also leading me to question Rost's credibility is the fact that he explicitly says he publicized his suit against Wyeth because he thought it would help him get a job with Pfizer during the take over of Pharmacia. In other words, when he went to the press to reveal the Wyeth suit he was- by his own admission- 100% acting in his own self interest. Which, by the way was a really, really, really stupid idea. Why would any company, under any circumstances, look at the fact a prospective employee is suing his previous boss as a good thing? Think about it.


My second complaint about Rost's story follows: His beef with Pfizer is over financial malignancies that went on at Pharmacia before the takeover. And Rost decided to blow the whistle on Pfizer only after the take over of Pharmacia... you know, right around the time that his job was suddenly in jeopardy. Hmm... I wonder what his motivation for blowing the whistle was...

Well I'll tell you what his motivation wasn't- and this is the key point of discreditment (shut up, I can invent new words if I need to): Re-importation of drugs. Rost's career with Big Pharma was finished before he became their political opponent. This much is very clear just from reading the book. Pfizer couldn't fire him because he was a whistleblower and was protected by law against being fired. But he had no future with them, and after suing his previous two employers, do you think any other biotech or pharmaceutical companies would hire a guy that was that much of a malcontent? Nuh-uh. So he goes on a political crusade against his employer, intending to damage his employers' reputation in the public domain, mainly out of spite and self interest.

So yeah, basically this book is falsely advertised and should have never been published. The story has no resolution and key plot details are conveniently overlooked by the author. It is a fun read though, and certainly there is lot of useful information in here. And Rost seems like a pretty nice guy.

Customer Rating: 

It's 2008 and I just read Dr. Rost's book. It is unfortunate that only patented proprietary drugs with large marketing budgets are promoted to the medical profession. It's all about maintaining the bottom line. Most medical professionals employed by Big Pharma sucumb to the trappings of their offices and support the corporate goals. Dr. Rost thought it was about Good Medicine. His tenacity will pay off in the end and may help change the marketing by Big Pharma. His story is just one of many who have resigned from Big Pharma positions because good medicine has been trumped by good marketing. He has the courage to tell his story. His recital about the exit waltz makes interesting reading. What isn't clearly stated is the culpability of Pharmacia management as well as the other companies in the original off label uses of the human growth hormone. Big Pharma as stated by Dr Rost has spent billions on fines for violating Good Manufacturering rules and practices if in the end the result is that the payoff is worth the risk. These practices just drive up the final cost of prescriptions to the consumer. T. Braun RPh. Confessions of a Drug Pusher

Customer Rating: 

"The Whistleblower" by Peter Rost ought to come with a warning label: "Don't read before bedtime. This page-turner won't let you sleep until you've read it cover to cover."

"The Whistleblower" is much more than a story about one man's titanic battle against corruption in the pharmaceutical industry. It's a story of courage in the face of corruption in any industry ... and a must-read book for anyone who has ever fought (or thought about fighting) the system.

Customer Rating: 

I have read many books about the healthcare industry and this is a very HONEST book... it amazes me how we all got into the healthcare business to help people and then you get SUCKED into the politics that rampage the healthcare industry. If you are a honest, hardworking person and you irregularities and tell senior management the next thing, you know you are out looking for another job.... THEY FIRE YOU! When I read this book I didn't feel like I was the only this has happened too!

Customer Rating: 

An excellent book on the new age of mergers and the lack of support for the employees that don't get the golden parachutes.

Good reading for all ages.