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"Writing is a way of saying things I can't say"--therapeutic creative writing: a qualitative study of its value to people with cancer cared for in cancer and palliative healthcare.

Author
Abstract
:

This paper reports on a therapeutic creative writing project undertaken at King's College London and University College Hospital London, funded by Arts Council England. The project sought to increase understanding of experiences of personal expressive and explorative writing by cancer patients receiving palliative care. Narrative methods were used to analyse and interpret patients' written and oral (transcripts of semistructured interviews) responses, researchers' field notes and written responses of staff. These indicated that writing: (1) facilitated patients' ability and opportunity to discover what they thought, felt, remembered; (2) enhanced their awareness of, and ability to express, issues to which focused attention needed to be paid; and (3) offered satisfaction and fulfilment of creative expression and exploration and the production of writings which to them and close others were vital. Illuminatively drawing upon patients' writings and responses, this paper is underpinned by discussion of therapeutic writing and its relationship to creative writing, with reference to a range of previous research.

Year of Publication
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2008
Journal
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Medical humanities
Volume
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34
Issue
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1
Number of Pages
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40-6
ISSN Number
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1468-215X
URL
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https://mh.bmj.com/lookup/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=23674539
DOI
:
10.1136/jmh.2007.000255
Short Title
:
Med Humanit
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