The Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Nursing

by Betty R. Ferrell, Nessa Coyle

Overview

The essence of nursing care continually exposes nurses to suffering. Although they bear witness to the suffering of others, their own suffering is less frequently exposed. This slim volume attempts to give voice to the suffering that nurses witness in patients, families, colleagues, and themselves. By making this suffering visible, the authors wish to honor it and to learn from it.
The audience includes nurses in all phases of training and practice - from students to educators to clinicians - in the wide array of settings and specialties in which nurses care for patients. The book offers nurses' colleagues in other professions - social workers, psychologists, chaplains, ethicists, and physicians - a rare window onto what it means to practice nursing.
Drs. Ferrell and Coyle are also the editors of Textbook of Palliative Nursing, 2nd ed (Oxford, 2006). Independently, they have worked more than 50 years in oncology nursing, caring for patients and working to improve the quality of care that patients receive.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195333121
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	01/10/2008
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 6.34(h) x 0.45(d)

Table of Contents

1. Suffering and the Practice of Nursing2. Ethical and Theological Perspectives on the Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Nursing3. Contextual Analysis of Patient Suffering4. The Suffering of Nurses5. What is the Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Nursing

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Shreda Paire, MS, RN, FNP-C(Odyssey HealthCare)
Description: This wonderful book should be part of the standard curriculum for all nursing schools because it considers a subject that is dealt with by almost every nurse in her or his career but is seldom addressed directly — the witnessing of human suffering.
Purpose: The purpose is to give voice to the suffering that nurses witness in patients, families, and even in themselves so that it may be honored and serve to teach them. Not only are these goals worthy, but they are addressed in a remarkable way.
Audience: The book is appropriate for all nurses. Of course, Betty Ferrell is more than a credible authority in the world of palliative care.
Features: This book does a remarkable job of covering the subject of suffering from both nursing and medical perspectives, then from both theological and ethical perspectives as well. The author elevates the everyday actions of the nurse to sacred acts that hold much importance in the care of the sick.
Assessment: This is a remarkable book and its discussion of the sacredness of nursing in the care of those who are suffering reminds me of why I love being a nurse. It should be required reading for all nurses as it is a reminder that dispensing pills and hanging IV bags are the things that get us to the bedside but the truly important part of our work is what we do once we are there, honoring and supporting the suffering patient.

Doody's Review Service

"This is a remarkable book...It should be required reading for all nurses as it is a reminder that dispensing pills and hanging IV bags are the things that get us to the bedside but the truly important part of our work is what we do once we are there, honoring and supporting the suffering patient."—Doody's, a 5 star review

"The Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Nursing takes the reader on a scholarly journey into the nature of suffering and the unique and profound role played by the nursing profession in recognizing, alleviating, and bearing witness to suffering. Betty Ferrell and Nessa Coyle, preeminent leaders in nursing, bring their decades of experience and insight to the book's delivery. Together, the authors do justice to the complex topic of suffering and consider the role of nursing with clarity and gravitas."—Elaine C. Meyer, PhD, RN, in JAMA

"In this concise volume, Ferrell and Coyle have captured the essence of nursing...this volume will become a timeless classic that should find its way into required reading at every level of nursing practice and education...However, the insights that the authors provide on sufferings are certainly not limited to the specialties of pain and palliative care of the discipline of nursing....this book will be of value to caregivers, educators, researchers, and clinicians in other disciplines....Ferrell and Coyle's Nature of Suffering and the Goals of Nursing was a long time coming, but well worth the wait."—Journal of Pain and Symptom Management

From the Publisher