Review
"There is a profoundly human quality to Bertman's work that makes her use of even well known paintings, photographs, and other images fresh and to the point. Her words help us to understand what the images do for us and for our patients. A cherished book that captures the essence of palliative care--to be revisited and reread often."
-Eric Cassell, M.D., Author of "The Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Medicine
"In her writings, personal appearances, and media creations, Bertman lays everything on the line. She does not hide behind generalizations, cliches or statistics. Her audiences know that they are in contact with somebody who faces the real issues honestly, in detail, and without simplification."
-Robert Kastenbaum, Ph.D., Professor of Gerontology, Arizona State University and Founding Editor of "Omega
..." an excellent teaching tool...especially recommended for health care professionals and counselors who work with terminally ill patients andpeople who are facing imminent death."
-Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
"It is hard to know what to praise the most. The writing is perceptive, caring, insightful, helpful, and challenging. The illustrations, poems, quotations, and paintings afford insights into terminal illness and death that textbooks and lectures never could on their own. The three sections of the book are uniformly superb."
-Nursing Times
Product Description
This work draws upon material from the visual arts, poetry, fiction, drama, and pop-culture to help lead the reader to a heightened awareness of the universal nature of the issues that face the dying and those who care for them. The author argues that the arts can help to stimulate dialogue, reveal concerns, facilitate grief work and provide consolation for the terminally ill.
