The gift of a lifetime: the hospital, modern medicine, and mortality

Alex Hollingsworth*, Krzysztof Karbownik, Melissa A. Thomasson, Anthony Wray

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

We explore how access to modern hospitals and medicine affects mortality by leveraging efforts of The Duke Endowment to modernize hospitals in the early-twentieth century. The Endowment helped communities build and expand hospitals, obtain state-of-the-art medical technology, attract qualified medical personnel, and refine management practices. We find that Duke support increased the size and quality of the medical sector, fostering growth in not-for-profit hospitals and high-quality physicians. Duke funding reduced both infant mortality—with larger effects for Black infants than White infants—and long-run mortality. Finally, we find that communities aided by Duke benefited more from medical innovations.
Original languageEnglish
JournalAmerican Economic Review
Volume114
Issue number7
Pages (from-to)2201-2238
ISSN0002-8282
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2024

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