Overview

Highly commended at the BMA Book Awards 2008 This book is about hospices seen through the eyes of the people who work in them. Their individual voices perspectives and stories invite readers into the day-to-day complexities of hospice life. There is growing public and professional attention to end of life care and the way dying patients and their families are treated. How can hospices make the process as peaceful and dignified as possible? What sort of people dedicate their careers to helping the dying? What difficulties are they up against in providing this care and what makes it all worthwhile? This inspirational book provides vivid real-life accounts of hospice life from managers doctors nurses carers and support staff. The thought-provoking narratives provide vital insights into the type of work undertaken in a hospice setting. They explore the challenges for - and personal motivations of - staff and the many ways hospices strive to meet the needs of patients and their families with sensitivity and respect. Life in a Hospice is enlightening reading for all healthcare professionals in palliative care including volunteer administrative and support staff. It is also highly recommended for nurses and others in caring roles considering a move into hospice work. Therapists counsellors and religious leaders will discover poignant and encouraging insights and people with a family member approaching the end of life will find the book reassuring and informative. 'I warmly recommend this book as a most helpful resource for preparing ministry teams in visiting the terminally ill in hospital hospice and at home. In the ministry teams which I have prepared there is always a concern for what to do & what to say. In reality the most important approach is one of listening giving space to the personal stories but also the silent spaces. The latter can be the hardest. Here then is an excellent book which will give insight into the richness and variety of peoples' thoughts feelings and experiences as they face death and dying. In training adults to be spiritual health care visitors the most important lesson to be learned is not what to say but how to be present in this way the spiritual health care visitor will enable the important voices to be heard and the personal experience of death and dying shared.' Reverand Anton Muller Vice President of The Association of Hospice and Palliative Care Chaplains and the Spiritual Care Co-ordinator at the Eden Valley Hospice Carlisle

Full Product Details

Author:   Ann Richardson
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Radcliffe Publishing Ltd
Edition:   1st New edition
Dimensions:   Width: 16.80cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 24.10cm
Weight:   0.363kg
ISBN:  

9781846192432

ISBN 10:   1846192439
Pages:   208
Publication Date:   30 September 2007
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Out of Print
Availability:   In Print  
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.

Table of Contents

Introducing hospices. The work of hospices. Helping dying people. Activities and therapies. Hospice compared to hospital care. What is special about a hospice. The nature of the work. The rhythm of a day. Particular roles. Day patients. The hospice at night. Patients at home. Managing the hospice. Responding to patients and relatives. Welcoming and reassuring. Physical and practical needs. Emotional help. Spiritual support. Discussions about returning home. The needs of relatives and friends. Children. Working with dying people. Helping people to come to terms with dying. Returning home to die. Recognising the terminal phase. The actual death. After a death. Giving time to families. Preparing the body. The next days. Attending funerals. Bereavement work. Subsequent contact with relatives. Sources of stress: difficult patients and families. Difficult patients and relatives. Anger and aggression. Patients and families in denial. Family neglect. Other sources of stress and their impact. Emotional involvement. Particular frustrations. General pressures of work. The impact on staff and their families. Ways of coping. Keeping work out of the home. Support from family and friends. Finding ways to relax. Support from the hospice. Own spirituality. Initial motivation. A sense of vocation. Prior experience of death. Other formative experiences. The accidental route. What makes the work worthwhile. Feeling involved. Responding to challenges. The variety of people. Feeling valued by patients and families. Working with other staff. A sense of fun. Working in a hospice. Qualities needed. Training. Telling people what you do. Reflections on living and dying. A good death. Choosing the timing of death. What happens after death? A sense of mortality. Learning what is important. Extending the learning from hospice care.

Reviews

'A good read for the layman with no great knowledge, it would help inexperienced professionals understand the real meaning of palliative care and for us as trustees it could be equally revealing[...] This book would offer a valuable introductory insight into the day to day work, its difficulties, its attractions and its rewards which could very effectively assist our understanding Life in a HospiceA .' MIKE WARREN, CHAIR FORUM OF CHAIRS OF INDEPENDENT HOSPICES 'Provides vivid, real-life accounts of hospice life seen through the eyes of the managers, doctors, nurses, carers and support staff who work in them... Enlightening reading for all healthcare professionals in palliative care, including volunteer,administrative and support staff.' THE LAMP

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Independent writer and researcher

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