Body image and the impact of terminal disease
Franca Madioni, Claudia Morales and Jean Pierre Michel
pp 160-162
A deteriorating self-image has a tendency to manifest itself in some patients as moral suffering that comes to the fore after physical suffering (such as dyspnoea, nausea and vomiting) has been alleviated. For patients suffering from this deterioration of their self image, the decline of their bodies together with their physical dependence on others, produces feelings of shame. This shame is then carried into their relationships with other people: ‘I am always ashamed when I see someone,’ Sartre wrote. ‘Shame is shame of oneself, it is the recognition of who I am, this object that others look at and judge.
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Ars moriendi: images of death in Spanish art
Mariá Fernández-Shaw Toda
pp 164-168
Death and the experience of dying have concerned mankind since the early ages. In our own cultural setting, Christianity has decisively emphasised an ambivalent belief: death is the end, but also the beginning of eternal life.
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The use of methadone in the care of the dying
Craig Gannon
pp 152-158
Methadone is a synthetic opioid, chemically related to dipipanone, that has been available for 50 years. Methadone’s actions are considered akin to morphine’s with proven analgesic activity, but its acknowledged roles are the management of drug abuse and cough suppression.
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Bereavement in people with learning disabilities
Irene Tuffrey-Wijne and Jane Bernal
pp 170-173
The needs of people with learning difficulties who have become bereaved have only been given attention in recent years. These needs remain poorly researched and often largely ignored. Bereaved people with learning difficulties may not receive the support they need, perhaps because those around them do not fully understand either learning difficulties or bereavement.
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Video communication and palliative care at home
Franco De Conno and Cinzia Martini
pp 174-177
Enormous national and regional differences still exist in the development of palliative care. While in the UK access to palliative care services is available in every health district, in Italy only a few are available and these are unevenly distributed throughout the country. Only four hospice inpatient facilities are currently available in Italy.
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The development of the European Association for Palliative Care
Heidi Blumhuber, Franco de Conno and Guillermo Vanegas
pp 178-181
The first congress on palliative care at a European level was held at the University of Milan, Italy, on 23–25 April, 1988. This conference was the first milestone in the history of the EAPC. Following this event, and thanks to the initiative of Professor Vittorio Ventafridda and the Floriani Foundation, the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) was founded by 42 members as a non-profit making association on the 12 December 1988.
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