Physiology for Health Care and Nursing

This U.K. book has a distinctive clear route from a cell to the complex human being. Beginning with cells and systems, it progresses to the cooperative activity of systems working together to maintain the internal environment; then to the predictable system responses to disturbance of the environment by injury and illness. This is extended to the application of the theory to the principles of selected therapies. The human is viewed not just as a whole body, but as a whole person, from conception to death; hearing, seeing, communicating and interacting with the external environment.

Sufficient anatomy is included to allow the reader to navigate the systems easily and relate function to structure. In addition to the new material on routinely assessed homeostatic parameters such as fluid and electrolytes, new sections are included on the principles of how drugs work, the characteristics which distinguish different types of wound dressing and current recommendations in palliative care.

Theory is related to application throughout, by clinical scenario questions and the use of dysfunction to illustrate normal function. Text boxes contributed by nursing and other health care practitioners extend the application of theory into more practical aspects.