
Access to this video is a benefit for members through PBS Passport.
Back to Show
Independent Lens
If Dreams Were Lightning: Rural Healthcare Crisis
Season 25
Episode 18
Rural hospitals around America are closing at alarming rates, leaving communities without care. Oscar and Emmy-nominated director Ramin Bahrani visits Appalachia, where American communities are left with limited or no access to healthcare. Explore the rural healthcare crisis in the South through the eyes of those struggling in it and the dedicated doctors trying to reach them.
Support Provided By

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:24:54
Midwestern families deal with unseen mental health issues affecting farmers in America.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:24:13
Women and LGBTQ+ journalists launch startup The 19th* to buck a broken news media system.

Unlock with PBS Passport
55:23
A nun with stage IV cancer teaches others that death doesn’t have to be the end.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:23:30
A public housing community in Miami becomes ground zero for climate gentrification.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:23:49
In Palm Springs, a Black neighborhood fights to remove a divisive wall of trees.

Unlock with PBS Passport
54:42
As the trial concludes, the people of Victoria, Texas, grapple with shocking revelations.

Unlock with PBS Passport
54:12
The town of Victoria’s support for the Muslim community wanes as rebuilding efforts stall.

Unlock with PBS Passport
54:41
A Texas town is thrown into the national spotlight when a local mosque erupts in flames.

55:43
Muslim chaplains advocate for equality in the military.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:25:42
A collaboration changes the course of forensic science and international human rights.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:25:23
Conservative beliefs have defined them. Now they’re championing their LGBTQ+ children.

Unlock with PBS Passport
1:25:49
A woman’s journey to heal from childhood sexual abuse and confront generational trauma.