The central theme of this book is the narrative nature of illness and the consequent need for interpretation as well as investigation of the patient's problems. Chapters include: the nature of illness experience in primary care; the role of narrative in psychotherapy; the narrative stream in medical ethics and medical negligence; the role of literature in the teaching of medicine and nursing; narrative in cross-cultural health; and technical aspects of analysing transcripts of the consultations. Contributions from patients and their carers, in which they describe their experiences of illness, healing, coping and dying, and personal stories from doctors and nurses in different fields of health care are also included.