Caring in Context : An Ethnography of Cancer Nursing in India

Drawing on ethnographic research conducted by an American nurse, Caring in Context is an exploration of how most of the world experiences cancer, and how nurses bear witness and respond to the suffering of others when they have little means to help—or for complex reasons, choose not to.

This compelling book centers on nurses in a government cancer hospital in South India and examines key contexts that influence nursing practice and the delivery of healthcare, including hierarchical legacies of colonialism and the caste system, resource scarcity, power and perceived powerlessness, and gender inequities. These themes are illustrated through intersecting narratives, such as the story of Hameeda, an orphaned teenager with sarcoma who lives at the hospital until she becomes paralyzed, and Sister Meena, a nurse who strives to provide better care but encounters overwhelming structural obstacles and is chastised by her superiors for doing too much.

Offering a critical re-examination of the realities faced by clinicians, patients, and family members who struggle to deliver and receive cancer care, Caring in Context’s unique perspective and accessible style will appeal to a wide and interdisciplinary audience, from practitioners, academics, and advocates to anyone interested in the complex context of the human experience.