Death, Dying and Bereavement: Issues for Practice (Policy and Practice in Health and Social Care Series): 11 - Softcover

Jacqueline H. Watts

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1906716080 ISBN 13: 9781906716080

Publisher: Dunedin Academic Press, 2009

Synopsis

Dr Watts considers the social context of death and dying in Britain today and the ways in which this influences service delivery. Care of the dying has become increasingly professionalised and medicalised and so hospitals, nursing homes and hospices are now the setting for most deaths. The provision of support for bereaved people has attracted greater attention with a large increase in the number of trained bereavement counsellors working in both charity and clinical settings. The theory and practice of palliative care, hospice development and a range of grief models that can inform bereavement care, drawing out some of the challenges for care practitioners forms the core of the book. Its underpinning themes include diversity; communication; palliative care; meanings of spirituality; and support for bereaved people. These issues are discussed against the general background of health and social care policy and with a particular focus on the review of Scottish palliative care services published in 2008 for the Auditor General of Scotland. Death, Dying and Bereavement provides an excellent overview of palliative care provision and the issues involved for students and for those health and social care workers, managers, policy makers and other practitioners who come into contact with death and dying in their practice.

About this title

Product Description:

The theory and practice of palliative care, hospice development and a range of grief models that can inform bereavement care, drawing out some of the challenges for care practitioners. The underpinning themes include diversity; communication; palliative care; meanings of spirituality; and support for bereaved people.

Review:

The book is suitable for undergraduates and other students of the health and social care professions. It provides some contextual background in terms of mortality and morbidity trends in the United Kingdom (UK), showing how these have changed rapidly in the last century, before going on to present synopses of contemporary challenges for policy and practice and some insights into the rich theoretical perspectives in this field of research and scholarship. Diversity, communication and the philosophy and practice of palliative care are overarching themes. The material on religious and spiritual aspects and on bereavement and loss is particularly interesting, and provides an excellent resource on which to base further research and study. Similarly, the interweaving of theoretical literature at various points makes for lively and thought-provoking reading. I would have liked to have seen some more case study examples: where these are used they make a valuable contribution to understanding. --Ageing & Society

Of particular interest are the implications of the implementation of some of the current recommendations in the UK and Scotland regarding the broader availability of palliative care. This book will be of interest to any student of palliative medicine and will be an important reference for anyone involved with the planning and development of palliative care services in the future. --International Association for Hospice & Palliative Care News, January 2010

Dr Watts has produced a book that will be both a valuable resource for those working with the dying and bereaved and an excellent resource for students and educators alike. --Signpost (Journal of Dementia and Mental Care Health Care of Older People)

About this edition

• Publisher: Dunedin Academic Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1906716080
• ISBN 13: 9781906716080
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 112