Review by Choice Review
Poignant and practical, this work by Buckley (Virginia Commonwealth Univ.) offers much to both beginning and experienced health care professionals who have clients with chronic illnesses. Buckley's primary target audience is fellow physicians. She takes the unusual approach of sharing stories from physicians who have experienced chronic illness themselves, thereby bridging the inevitable chasm between patients and physicians. Material on the similar chasm that exists between patients and other health professionals extends the reach of this book. Section 1 discusses the experience of illness, with an emphasis on individuals' identities, roles, and relationships; emotional reactions to illness and its effects; and the process by which chronically ill individuals establish a new way of "being" during and after illness. While acknowledging the barriers to holistic care inherent in today's health care system, section 2 provides practicing health professionals with practical approaches for treating chronically ill individuals holistically. The book ends with a return to the physicians whose stories it shared at the onset, offering their reflections on illness and care. Perhaps most useful are the additional readings and exercises included in the course on doctor-patient communication (appendix 2). This book will be useful for libraries that serve health professions' education programs and practicing professionals. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-level undergraduates and above. T. D. DeLapp emerita, University of Alaska Anchorage
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
