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A Doctor's Reflections On Illness In A High-Tech Era
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
September 2008
On Sale: September 2, 2008
240 pages ISBN: 0374266662 EAN: 9780374266660 Hardcover
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Non-Fiction Memoir
Critical illness is a fact of life. Even those of us who
enjoy decades of good health are touched by it eventually,
either in our own lives or in those of our loved ones. And
when this happens, we grapple with serious and often
confusing choices about how best to live with our
afflictions. A Life Worth Living is a book
for people facing these difficult decisions. Robert
Martensen, a physician, historian, and ethicist, draws on
decades of experience with patients and friends to explore
the life cycle of serious illness, from diagnosis to end of
life. He connects personal stories with reflections upon
mortality, human agency, and the value of “cutting-edge”
technology in caring for the critically ill. Timely
questions emerge: To what extent should efforts to extend
human life be made? What is the value of nontraditional
medical treatment? How has the American health-care system
affected treatment of the critically ill? And finally, what
are our doctors’ responsibilities to us as patients, and
where do those responsibilities end? Using poignant case
studies, Martensen demonstrates how we and our loved ones
can maintain dignity and resilience in the face of life’s
most daunting circumstances.
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