Being mortal : illness, medicine and what matters in the end
By: Gawande, Atul.
Contributor(s): Wellcome Collection [associated name.].
Publisher: London : Profile Books, 2015Description: 282 pages : illustrations ; 20 cm.Content type: text | still image Media type: unmediated Carrier type: volumeISBN: 9781846685828 (paperback); 1846685826 (paperback).Other title: Illness, medicine and what matters in the end.Subject(s): MORTALITY | DEATH | AGEINGItem type | Current library | Collection | Call number | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Book | IHC Library | Main Collection | 540 GAW (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | Available | W004554 |
Introduction. - 1. The independent self. - 2. Things fall apart. - 3. Dependence. - 4. Assistance. - 5. A better life. - 6. Letting go. - 7. Hard conversations. - 8. Courage. - Epilogue.
For most of human history, death was a common, ever-present possibility. It didn't matter whether you were five or fifty - every day was a roll of the dice. But now, as medical advances push the boundaries of survival further each year, we have become increasingly detached from the reality of being mortal. So here is a book about the modern experience of mortality - about what it's like to get old and die, how medicine has changed this and how it hasn't, where our ideas about death have gone wrong. With his trademark mix of perceptiveness and sensitivity, Atul Gawande outlines a story that crosses the globe, as he examines his experiences as a surgeon and those of his patients and family, and learns to accept the limits of what he can do. Never before has aging been such an important topic. The systems that we have put in place to manage our mortality are manifestly failing; but, as Gawande reveals, it doesn't have to be this way. The ultimate goal, after all, is not a good death, but a good life - all the way to the very end. Published in partnership with the Wellcome Collection, a free visitor destination that explores the connections between medicine, life and art.
Patron comment on 15/02/2016
Insightful and thought-provoking book about the ways in which the end of life is now managed, particularly in the West, by medical technology that seeks to use invasive and arguably detrimental interventions to prolong life. The question has become “Can we?” at the cost of “Should we?”.
Gawande examines this phenomena from a philosophical perspective. He describes new ways of thinking about the quality of life rather than the postponement of inevitable death. The last couple of chapters are more of a cathartic exploration for the author himself regarding the end of his father’s life than of a sound case for acknowledging our mortality.
Highly recommended.
Patron comment on 04/03/2016
A great read and makes many insightful perspectives and learnings.