1.3.2 Recurrent themes When the accounts of people who have described a near-death experience are looked at side by side it is possible to identify some common features. This isn’t to say that all of these features are present in every account, but that amidst variations there are certainly recurrent themes. The following list is compiled from a variety of studies, including the important study undertaken by Sabom (1982), himself initially sceptical. Except for third party Introduction This unit is an adapted extract from the course Death and dying
(K260) This unit will explore how knowledge and beliefs about death and encounters with death affect people’s lives. It will also examine the concept of a ‘good death’ from an individual perspective in order to enhance the quality of dying. Except for third party materials a Acknowledgements Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this unit: The content acknowledged below is Proprietary and used under licence (not subject to Creative Commons licence). See Terms and Conditions. Figure 1 © JupiterImages/Banana Stock/Alamy; Figure 2 © Gary Calton/Alamy; Figure 3 © Spa Press/Rex Features. Next steps After completing this unit you may wish to study another OpenLearn Study Unit or find out more about this topic. Here are some suggestions: If you wish to study formally at The Open University, you may wish t 1 Expectations and administrative pressures The medical prognoses and diagnoses of dying raise expectations of what will actually happen to the dying person. For example, someone is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, they will be given a forecast that covers the estimated length of time before death, any likely symptoms, the development of the illness, and possible treatment(s). Of course, these types of medical expectations are not unique to death and dying: they are found in all treatments of illness, and no doubt you will have had Introduction This unit asks the reader to consider the experience of grief and bereavement and in particular the extent to which grieving people need professional help. The unit considers the evidence for the effects of grief and the extent to which current ways of responding are helpful. This unit is an adapted extract from the Open University course Death and dying
(K260) Acknowledgements Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this unit: Except for third party materials and otherwise stated (see terms and conditions), this content is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Licence References Next steps After completing this unit you may wish to study another OpenLearn Study Unit or find out more about this topic. Here are some suggestions: If you wish to study formally at The Open Universit 2.2 Neuronal changes during grief Recently medical researchers have been joined by neuroscientists determined to pin down precisely those parts of the brain that are activated by the experience of grief. Although this approach might be considered to be reductionist, it demonstrates the way in which some scientists are attempting to explain complex behaviour in neuroscientific terms. Eight volunteers who had experienced the death of someone close in the previous year agreed to be studied as part of a research project con 2.1 Introduction A rapidly growing branch of medical science has begun to try to measure the physiological impact of grief. Incorporated into this study are the ways in which bodily functions change in response to emotional stimuli. This new area of scientific research has been called ‘psychoneuroimmunology’ and is the study of how different feelings and stresses lead to changes in hormone levels and other metabolic functions within the body. These can often be quantified through blood tests and othe 1 Is grief a medical problem? Grief is a fertile area for debate and controversy within health care professions, and its significance as something in need of medical attention has been debated by both health analysts and social commentators alike. Is it a ‘natural’ phenomenon that should be respected and acknowledged, but one that requires that the bereaved individual is left alone to experience it in their own way? Or should the bereaved person be assisted with intervention which relies on the presumption that g Introduction This unit helps you to explore the extent to which death and dying in western societies are medical events and what aspects of death and dying might be neglected as a consequence. The unit covers the way that such things as medicine provide the context of the experiences associated with the end of life. This unit is an adapted extract from the Open University course Death and dying
Acknowledgements The material acknowledged below is Proprietary and used under licence (Creative Commons licence). See Terms and conditions. Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to use material in this unit: 4 Using data to set targets Lecture 19 - 12/2/2010 Lecture 19 - 12/2/2010 Lecture 19 - 12/2/2010 Lecture 19 - 12/2/2010 Lecture 19 - 12/2/2010
Figures
Author(s):
Author(s):
Acknowlegements
Author(s):
Target setting for pupil attainment is seen as being a means of raising standards in schools through placing pupil achievement at the core of school planning. This unit will help governors of secondary schools ensure that appropriate targets are set and provide guidance on assessing the data that needs to be evaluated to come to such decisions.
Lecture 19
Lecture 19
Lecture 19
Lecture 19
Lecture 19