Handbook of palliative care - Christina Faull

Most people wish to spend the last months of their life in comfort and at home, surrounded by their family and friends. The provision of good palliative care is vital to achieve this goal and this work is a significant part of the activity of the primary health care team and of many health care professionals in hospitals.

Written particulary with the GP and Primary Health Care team in mind, this book provides a comprehensive, yet practical guide to palliative care covering issues from clinical skills and service provision to ethical and psychosocial matters and includes a discussion of complementary therapies in palliative care and the patients views. It advocates a holistic approach to care based on the editors experience of the specialist and primary care environments. The book will prove useful to a wide range of professionals and students including doctors, nurses and pharmacists.

All patients with advanced disease, not just those with cancer, need a holistic approach to their care focusing on quality of life. The editors and authors have endeavoured to make this book relevant to as wide a patient group as possible including specific chapters on AIDS and Motor Neurone Disease.