Hospice Palliative Care
Book Reviews

Dr. Woodruff, MD
(Australia)

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Palliative Care for the Primary Care Team

Eileen Palmer and John Howarth
Quay Books, 2005
320 pp
ISBN 1-85642-229-1
RRP £32.50

As described in the Introduction, this book is designed as a practical handbook for busy GPs and District Nurses who may not have had the benefit of training in palliative care. It starts with five core themes: The importance of the therapeutic relationship, dealing with the patient and support network together, the importance of whole-person care, good palliative care is pro-active, and good communication is essential.

The five parts of the book cover physical, psychological, social, spiritual and organizational matters. The first contains chapters on pain, physical symptoms and nutrition and also good chapters on palliative care for conditions other than cancer, the management of the last few days, and the operation of syringe drivers. The other sections cover the expected material and there are useful chapters on adjustment reactions, communication issues and ethical considerations.

The text is set out in clinically practical steps and there is a liberal use of lists, tables, figures and illustrative case notes. I think this book achieves its aims and would be a useful quick reference in general practice.

LIVING WITH A LONG-TERM ILLNESS. The Facts.

Frankie Campling and Michael Sharpe
Oxford University Press, 2006
203 pp
ISBN 0-19-852882-5
RRP £12.99, $US19.95

This is a well-written and comprehensive self-help guide for anyone living with a long-term illness written by a former sufferer of chronic fatigue syndrome (FC) and a professor of psychological medicine and symptom research (MS).

The first section deals with what chronic long-term illness is and the biopsychosocial model. Subsequent sections deal with managing physical/biological problems, emotional issues, interpersonal problems, and practical problems. The difficult issues, such as living with uncertainty or thinking about death and dying, are dealt with head-on. The statement that paracetamol is not available in the USA is correct; Americans use the same substance by the truckload but call it acetaminophen.

In places, I thought the text was leaning a little too far to accommodate complementary therapies. (Shouldn’t there be a clear warning that some complementary therapies can have serious, even fatal, adverse effects?). But overall it is packed with useful, practical, sensible information that must be of benefit to anyone with a long-term illness.

PAIN 2005 – AN UPDATED REVIEW

Douglas M. Justins (Ed)
IASP Press, 2005
406 pp
ISBN 0-931092-63-9
RRP $US40.00

This volume is the Refresher Course Syllabus from the IASP Meeting in 2005. In 40 chapters, experts provide updated reviews of a wide range of topics from basic science to microarray gene expression profiling. Whilst the book does not have all the details that would have been contained in the lectures, it provides a most useful update on our current knowledge of the mechanisms and management of pain. For those unable to attend the meeting, particularly those involved in teaching about pain, this relatively inexpensive review would be a most worthwhile investment.

SURVIVING GRIEF

A. M. Brady Reinsmith
Judson Press 2001
102pp
ISBN 0-8179-1381-4
RRP $US6.00

Written by a professional educator, pastoral counselor and spiritual mentor, this little purse-sized book comprises 30 questions and answers to inform, comfort, and provide practical assistance to grieving persons. Deeply Christian in tone, the format would enable individuals to go directly to their own particular issues or problems.

Roger Woodruff,
Director of Palliative Care, Austin Health,
Melbourne, Australia

Visit our new Hospice and Palliative Care Bookshop at:
www.hospicecare.com/bookshop/