Loss, Change, and Bereavement in Palliative Care

"For anyone seeking to develop their understanding of loss and change, whether in a palliative care of general or social care setting, this book contains much useful material which can be taken selectively or in its entirety." Hospise Information Bulletin How do professionals meet the needs of bereaved people? How do professionals undertake best practice with individuals, groups, families and communities? What are the implications for employing research to influence practice? This book provides a resource for working with a complex range of loss situations and includes chapters on childhood bereavement, and individual and family responses to loss and change. It contains the most up-to-date work in the field presented by experienced practitioners and researchers and is relevant not only for those working in specialist palliative care settings, but for professionals in general health and social care sectors. Strong links are maintained between research and good practice throughout the book. These are reinforced by the coherent integration of international research material and the latest thinking about loss and bereavement. Experts and clinicians draw upon their knowledge and practice, whilst the essential perspective of the service user is central to this book. Loss, Change and Bereavement in Palliative Care provides essential reading for a range of professional health and social care disciplines practising at postgraduate or post-registration/qualification level. It challenges readers, at an advanced level, on issues of loss, change and bereavement. Contributors Lesley Adshead, Jenny Altschuler, Peter Beresford, Grace Christ, Suzy Croft, Pam Firth, Shirley Firth, Richard Harding, Felicity Hearn, Jennie Lester, Gill Luff, Linda Machin, Jan McLaren, David Oliviere, Ann Quinn, Phyllis Silverman, Jean Walker, Karen Wilman.

Table of Contents:
Notes on the contributors Series editor's preface Acknowledgements Foreword Introduction 1 The context of loss, change and bereavement in palliative care 2 Mourning: a changing view 3 Research in practice 4 Illness and loss within the family 5 Life review with the terminally ill - narrative therapies 6 The death of a child 7 Interventions with bereaved children 8 Involving service users in palliative care: from theory to practice 9 Excluded and vulnerable groups of service users 10 Carers: current research and developments 11 Groupwork in palliative care 12 Cultural perspectives on loss and bereavement 13 Conclusions Index.

About the Author :
Pam Firth is Head of Family Support at Isabel Hospice and responsible for providing a psychosocial service that includes counselling, family therapy and group work for patients and their families. She previously lectured in social work at Middlesex University and is currently a U.K. Director of the European Association of Palliative Care. Gill Luff was, until recently, Macmillan Senior Lecturer in Palliative Care Social Work at the University of Gloucestershire. She is currently a freelance consultant in palliative care in the field of education and staff support. David Oliviere is Director of Education and Training at St Christopher's Hospice. He is a Visiting Professor at the School of Health and Social Sciences, Middlesex University.