This book draws together a range of both classic and newly commissioned pieces on the multidisciplinary study of death and dying.

Organized into five parts, the book begins with a general exploration of the meaning of death, before moving on to consider caring at the end-of-life. Further readings explore the moral and ethical dilemmas in the context of death and dying. The fourth part of the book examines the issue of grief and ritual after death, while the final part considers some of the issues that arise when researching in the field of death and dying.

By drawing together information, reflection and experience this authoritative text will broaden your understanding of the subject area. The book will be a core text for students in nursing, medicine, social work, counselling and health and social care. It will also be essential reading for all professionals and carers who come into contact with death and bereavement.

Death and Dying: A Reader is the Set Book for the Open University course Death and Dying (K260).

PART ONE: UNDERSTANDING DEATH
Introduction - Carol Komaromy
Motionless Body - Seymour Fisher
The Sight and Sound of Death: The Management of Dead Bodies in Residential and Nursing Homes for Older People - Carol Komaromy
Foucault and the Medicalization Critique - Deborah Lupton
Death and the Maiden: End-of-Life Policy in the USA - Regis A Desilva
The Dying Soul: Spiritual Care at the End of Life - Mark Cobb
Death and Religion - David Webster
Mortality: World Variations in Death and Dying - Cathy E Lloyd
PART TWO: CARING AT THE END OF LIFE
Introduction - Sarah Earle
A Social History of Dying - Allan Kellehear
Quality End-of-Life Care: A Global Perspective - Peter A Singer and Kerry W Bowman
The State of Dying - Carol Komaromy
The End-of-Life and Implications for Social Work Practice - Mercedes Bern-Klug, Charles Gessert and Sarah Forbes
Understanding Reproductive Loss: The Moment of Death - Sarah Earle et al
What Is the Best Way to Help Caregivers in Cancer and Palliative Care? - Richard Harding and Irene J Higginson
Illness and the Creative Arts: A Critical Exploration - Jacqueline H Watts
PART THREE: MORAL AND ETHICAL DILEMMAS IN PRACTICE
Introduction - Mary Twomey
What Is Ethics? - Eve Garrard
The Role of the Family in Patient Care - Anne-Marie Slowther
Should Children¿s Autonomy Be Respected by Telling Them of Their Imminent Death? - T Vince and A Petros
Critical Moments: Death and Dying in Intensive Care - Jane E Seymour
Brain Death: A Sociological View - Allan Kellehear
Palliative Care and the Doctrine of Double Effect - Stephen Wilkinson
PART FOUR: EXPLORING GRIEF AND RITUAL AFTER DEATH
Introduction - Sarah Earle
Theories of Grief: A Critical Review - Neil Small
In the Shadow of the Traditional Grave - Leonie Kellaher, David Prendergast and Jenny Hockey
A Voice Unheard: Grandparents¿ Grief over Children Who Died of Cancer - Miri Nehari, Dorit Grebler and Amos Toren
The Ritual Work of UK Childhood Bereavement Services - Liz Rolls
Facilitating Bereavement Recovery and Restoring Dignity to the Genocide Victims in Rwanda - Eugénie Mukanoheli
The Making of Roadside Memorials - Jennifer Clark and Majella Franzman
Online Memorialization - Kylie Veale
PART FIVE: RESEARCHING DEATH AND DYING
Introduction - Sarah Earle
Key Challenges and Ways forward in Researching the ¿Good Death¿ - Marilyn Kendall et al
Keeping the Personal Costs down: Minimizing Distress When Researching Sensitive Issues - Margo J Milne and Cathy E Lloyd
The Role of the Qualitative Researcher in Loss and Grief Research - Louise Rowling
Growing up with HIV: The Experiences of Young People Living with HIV since Birth in the UK - Judith Dorrell et al
The Absence of Death and Dying in Intellectual Disability Research - Stuart Todd
Researching Reproductive Loss - Gayle Letherby
Bridging the Gap between Research and Practice in Bereavement - Bridging Work Group