The Pursuit of Life

“The authors have done an extraordinary job of walking readers through the history of palliative care and showing the current and potential future of the profession.”

—Doody’s Review Service

“An illustrious group of scholars, doctors, nurses, chaplains, and ethicists joins together to offer robust—and indispensable—insight into health and healing. The Pursuit of Life is a vigorous and vital resource for anyone in the position of being a caregiver.”

—Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer

“The Pursuit of Life offers a teaching not just on how to die well but also on how to live well in the face of suffering and death. The insights offered by this distinguished cadre of writers shed light on health and healing alongside living and dying.”

—Balfour M. Mount, M.D., O.C. O.Q.

“This is a beautiful, diverse, wise book about the experience of working in palliative care and the personal, collegial, cultural, ethical, moral, practical, and clinical challenges that clinicians practicing in our field confront. The editors and authors have crafted a deep portrait of what it means to work in the liminal space between life and death in palliative care.”

—Susan Block, MD, Harvard Medical School

“This remarkable collection of essays explores the range and depth of human caring for people with life-threatening illness. In caring well, we can alleviate suffering and preserve people’s capacity to grow—inwardly and together—through the end of life. This is the gift that palliative care brings in service to the gift of life itself.”

—Ira Byock, MD, FAAHPM, author of Dying Well and The Best Care Possible

“The Pursuit of Life is an impressive and immensely important collection which addresses the history, nuances, and status of palliative care while also posturing future directions. It contributes significantly to the burgeoning field of medical humanities and explores multivalent trajectories which are nobly aimed at easing suffering. I commend this thought-provoking and compassionate book to all who are dedicated to this goal.”

—Robert Newman, PhD, President and Director, National Humanities Center

“Bioethicists have contributed to and may learn from these insightful essays on the origins, meaning, and future of palliative care. This magnificent volume, at the intersection of secular bioethics, spirituality, religion, and narrative medicine, will speak to all health professionals and laypersons who care about human flourishing through life’s end.”

—Mildred Z. Solomon, EdD, President, The Hastings Center

“This original book approaches the discussion of palliative care from both a clinical and classically academic perspective. It is rare to find a history of program development adjacent to a discussion of how the themes of Odysseus highlight the issues of suffering and compassion.”

—M. Elizabeth Paulk, M.D., UT Southwestern Medical Center

“An important addition to health science collections and libraries at colleges with strong nursing programs.”

—A. W. Klink Choice

Robert Fine, MD, MACP, FAAHPM, HEC-C, is the Director of Clinical Ethics and Supportive Palliative Care at Baylor Scott and White Health. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, teaches, and publishes widely in ethics and palliative care with a particular focus on medical futility.

Jack Levison, PhD, holds the W. J. A. Power Chair of Old Testament Interpretation and Biblical Hebrew at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University. He is the author of many books, including most recently A Boundless God: The Spirit According to the Old Testament and The Holy Spirit Before Christianity.