Book reviews

Grief and the Healing Arts: Creativity as Therapy by

Sandra L Bertman (ed.) 1999. Baywood Publishing Company.

ISBN 0 89503 189 2. Price £29.95.

As a nurse and a teacher one of the questions I am frequently asked

is, `How can we accompany our patients to the depths of their

suffering and yet avoid becoming burned out?' All of us experience

grief at some time in our lives.

This book describes itself as a source of energy for all those

involved in providing support to those in grief. It is structured

around four core sections: (i) the arts, personal grief, and

professional roles; (ii) some ways in which caregivers use the arts

for themselves and for those they companion; (iii) lessons from

cultures old and new; and (iv) basic needs of grieving people. Each

section provides a collection of chapters written by people who have

experience of using creative methods in caring for the dying. The

book provides a rich source of ideas and arts, from music, through

poetry, to sculpture and many more. Bertman does an excellent job

in editing all the contributions, giving the book a coherent structure

whilst at the same time avoiding diminishing the creativity and

powerful expressions of working with people in grief.

Although it is a book ®lled with American experiences, this is a

rich source of material which can be applied across cultural

boundaries. I fully recommend it to all students, both undergrad-

uate and postgraduate, and to all health care professionals. This

book should be recommended reading on all courses dealing with

death and dying, no matter what the context, acute or in community

care.

BRIAN MILLAR MN, RN, DipN, PGCE

Lecturer in Nursing Studies

School of Nursing & Midwifery

UWCM, Cardiff

On Death Without Dignity: the Human impact of

Technological Dying by David Wendell Moller. 1990. Baywood

Publishing Company. ISBN: 0 89503 066 7.

I began reading this book at the same time as a family member was

diagnosed with a critical illness. I had a background in acute care

and this family crisis gave me an insight into the technical world of

modern health care. Schooled as I was in heroic measures to rescue

people from the inevitable, I found David Moller's book both

refreshing and challenging.

Moller, a social scientist, provides a very different perspective

from the biomedical one I remember. The book is divided into eight

chapters and details the trajectory of death in modern society from

an analysis of technology through death and its meaning, to a

description of death and dying in modern health care institutions. I

found the chapters on `The Stigma of Dying' and `The Roller

Coaster of Dying' brought back many memories of persons who I

had cared for. Rarely has a book caused me to experience so many

emotions all at the same time. It concludes with a chapter in which

Moller lays out the foundations for a digni®ed death.

Each chapter is clearly written and although the content describes

death in American society, there are many parallels to be drawn with

modern health care in the United Kingdom. A rich source of

research references, this book is recommended reading to all nurses

and health care professionals. It will have particular relevance to

those working in the ®elds of oncology, palliative care and critical

care. But to anyone who has ever questioned `death without dignity'

this book is a must read. I recommend it to all students and

professional health care practitioners.

BRIAN MILLAR MN, RN, DipN, PGCE

Lecturer in Nursing Studies

School of Nursing & Midwifery

UWCM, Cardiff

Using Evidence in Health and Social Care by R. Gomm

& C. Davies. 2000. Open University/Sage Publications Ltd.,

London. ISBN 0 7619 6495 9. 260 pp. £15.99.

Ever since the government introduced the concept of `evidence-

based healthcare' there has been a rush by distinguished authors and

experts to produce the de®nitive text. This book adds to the

growing list of texts that offer a clear, informative and incisive

exploration of the topic.

Edited by two distinguished authors, Roger Gomm & Celia

Davies, the book is divided into two key sections. Section 1

addresses the issue of what is evidence and then provides key

chapters on making sense of surveys, understanding experimental

research design, interpretative research studies and action research.

Each chapter draws on the knowledge and expertise of well-known

researchers. The chapters are clearly written and combine clever use

of text, boxes, diagrams and re¯ection. The chapters conclude with

key references. Section 2 is perhaps the most important for those

healthcare practitioners faced with the dilemma of implementing

research in their practice. Chapters explore research into practice:

information needs for better practice; would it work here?/could we

afford it; and a ®nal chapter on the importance of evidence for

planning services. Here, again, the authors combine clear reader-

friendly writing with imaginative and creative use of `real examples'

to help the reader come to their own informed choice. The book

concludes with a detailed list of sources on evidence-based practice.

This book joins a growing list on the subject, though the authors

have successfully managed to make the topic interesting, informat-

ive and understandable to anyone who reads it. I particularly

recommend the chapters on making sense of surveys, producing

evidence ethically and research into practice: making a difference

Journal of Clinical Nursing 2001; 10: 154±157

154 Ó 2001 Blackwell Science Ltd