Top Palliative Medicine Books

This comprehensive pocket-sized handbook is a practical, user-friendly guide for clinicians caring for patients with advanced or life-limiting illnesses. It emphasizes whole-person care, honoring patient wishes, and addressing physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Alphabetically organized chapters and a detailed index allow quick access to information, including disease-specific guidance, symptom management, communication strategies, and ethical issues like withdrawing life support or physician-assisted death. It also provides detailed content on opioid use, medication dosing, and the pharmacology of commonly used palliative drugs, making it an essential reference for everyday palliative care practice.

Print length ‏ : ‎ 320 pages

The StatPearls Hospice and Palliative Exam Review (9th Edition) is a comprehensive question-based study tool designed to help candidates maximize their score on board exams across multiple specialties, including surgery, internal medicine, psychiatry, and neurology. It includes first-, second-, and third-order multiple choice questions aligned with official exam content outlines, each supported by four detailed teaching points. Updated annually by a large team of experts, it reflects current exam standards. The exam itself is 8 hours long with 240 questions, covering topics such as symptom management, patient assessment, ethics, communication, and interdisciplinary care. StatPearls, founded in 2014, is now the world’s largest medical education resource with over 75,000 review questions and 8,000 peer-reviewed articles.

Print length: 969 pages

Textbook of Palliative Care is a comprehensive, clinically focused resource that advances palliative care as both a science and an art. With contributions from global experts across disciplines, it features over 100 chapters covering symptom management, care settings, disease-specific approaches, emergencies, ethics, public health, and research. Designed for ease of use, the book supports both specialists and non-specialists caring for patients with serious or terminal illnesses. It serves as a valuable tool for clinicians, researchers, and policymakers, emphasizing the evolving nature of palliative care and the need for continued education and innovation in the field.

Print length ‏ : ‎ 1888 pages