A collection of passages concerning death and dying, and to consider the essential nature of general practice. This book is useful to doctors, especially those with an interest in medical humanities. It is also useful to general readers interested in end of life matters, and the nature and art of medicine.
The phrase 'medical humanities' has a currency that is wider than any agreement as to what it means, though those engaged in the field usually know what they are attempting. This volume examines the idea of 'symptom' as a route to understanding the structure of clinical practice.
Based on the Medicine and Literature column in Education for General Practice , this text shows how parallels between the characters in literature and the consulting room can be made through the understanding the authors had of the human predicament.