Being Mortal
Also known as Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End
Atul Gawande's 2014 book arguing that care near the end of life should aim at well-being, not just survival.
At a glance
Key ideas
Well-being over survival, A life with purpose, How we house the old …
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- Gawande, a surgeon, writes about frailty in old age, serious illness and approaching death.
- He argues that doctors should work to improve quality of life rather than focus only on survival.
- He looks at models of care for the old, from poorhouses and multi-generational homes to nursing homes and assisted living.
- He argues that people nearing death should still be able to live with meaning and purpose, and that hospice is the most humane model of care.
- He draws on his patients' stories and his own family's.
Why it matters
- It is widely read on end-of-life care, won the overall prize at the BMA Medical Book Awards, and became a PBS Frontline documentary.
Key facts
- Author
- Atul Gawande1
- Published
- 20141
- Structure
- Eight chapters; two, "Things Fall Apart" and "Letting Go", began as New Yorker essays1
- Awards
- BMA Medical Book Awards overall prize (Council Chair's Choice); Royal Society of Biology General Book Prize (2015); longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize (2014)1
- Documentary
- PBS Frontline, February 2015, directed by Thomas Jennings with Gawande as co-writer and correspondent; Emmy-nominated1
- Film
- A Searchlight adaptation by Aziz Ansari, announced 2022; production was suspended in April 20221
Key ideas
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Well-being over survival1
Medicine near the end should aim at quality of life, not only at keeping the patient alive.
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A life with purpose1
People nearing death should still be able to live meaningfully and have a purpose.
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How we house the old1
From poorhouses and family homes to nursing homes and assisted living, a concept Keren Brown Wilson helped originate.
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Hospice1
Gawande holds that hospice is the most humane model of care at the end of life.
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Doctors who avoid the talk1
Doctors, himself included, are often untrained and uncomfortable talking with patients about chronic illness and death.
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