Care of the dying patient / edited by David A. Fleming and John C. Hagan III.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Pain management at the end of life / Clay M. Anderson -- Relieving pain : today's legal and ethical risks / David A. Fleming -- Relieving non-pain suffering at the end of life / Clay M. Anderson -- Questions and answers about hospice : a guide for physicians / Steven Zweig and Paul Tatum -- The burden of caregiving at the end of life / David A. Fleming -- Helping older patients and their families make decisions about end-of-life care / Steven Zweig and David R. Mehr -- Cultural sensitivity in end-of-life discussions / David A. Fleming -- Redefining hope for the terminally ill / Debra Parker Oliver -- Spirituality and end-of-life care / Scott E. Shannon and Paul Tatum -- The path ahead : difficult lessons for physicians and society / David A. Fleming.

Print version record.

Annotation Although the need for improved care for dying patients is widely recognized and frequently discussed, few books address the needs of the physicians, nurses, social workers, therapists, hospice team members, and pastoral counselors involved in care. Care of the Dying Patient contains material not found in other sources, offering advice and solutions to anyoneprofessional caregiver or family memberconfronted with incurable illness and death. Its authors have lectured and published extensively on care of the dying patient and here review a wide range of topics to show that relief of physical suffering is not the only concern in providing care. This collection encompasses diverse aspects of end-of-life care across multiple disciplines, offering a broad perspective on such central issues as control of pain and other symptoms, spirituality, the needs of caregivers, and special concerns regarding the elderly. In its pages, readers will find out how to <ul style="margin-top: 0in"><li style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt">effectively utilize palliative-care services and activate timely referral to hospice</li><li style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt">arrange for care that takes into account patients cultural beliefs</li><li style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt">respond to spiritual and psychological distress, including the loss of hope that often overshadows physical suffering</li></ul> The authors especially emphasize palliative care and hospice, since some physicians fear that such referrals may be viewed by patients and families as abandonment. They also address ethical and legal risks in pain management and warn that fear of overprescribing pain medication may inadvertently lead to ineffective pain relief and even place the treating team at risk of liability for undertreatment of pain. While physicians have the ability to treat disease, they also help to determine the time and place of death, and they must recognize that end-of-life choices are made more complex than ever before by advances in medicine and at the same time increasingly important. Care of the Dying Patient addresses some of the challenges frequently confronted in terminal care and points the way toward a more compassionate way of death.

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