The Beauty in Breaking

Andrew Johnson Hospital, a large teaching institution in Philadelphia, is where Harper worked after completing her residency. Driven by a desire to continually improve and contribute through leadership roles, Harper proved herself there by serving as the director of performance improvement. Given the upheaval in her personal life, the hospital’s symbolic role in her narrative is its physical representation of starting anew. Additionally, it represents part of the reason why her marriage ended, as she and her husband moved in different directions when he decided he could not move to Philadelphia with her and live in the shadow of her success. 

Harper alludes to Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in the context of treatment for veterans, for whom this approach often works well. CAM relies on a group of internal medicine doctors, social workers, and psychiatrists to provide treatment and wellness practices beyond conventional ones. In working with veterans, Harper at times hopes for alternative treatment methods because veterans often have unique mental and emotional needs. Despite CAM’s potential for assisting her in her work at the Veteran Affairs Hospital, she was unable to reap the benefits of a CAM program, be it for funding, timing, or logistics.