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Are our identities attached to our faces? If so, what happens when the face connected to the self is gone forever—or replaced? In Face/On, Sharrona Pearl investigates the stakes for changing the face–and the changing stakes for the face—in both contemporary society and the sciences.
 
The first comprehensive cultural study of face transplant surgery, Face/On reveals our true relationships to faces and facelessness, explains the significance we place on facial manipulation, and decodes how we understand loss, reconstruction, and transplantation of the face. To achieve this, Pearl draws on a vast array of sources: bioethical and medical reports, newspaper and television coverage, performances by pop culture icons, hospital records, personal interviews, films, and military files. She argues that we are on the cusp of a new ethics, in an opportune moment for reframing essentialist ideas about appearance in favor of a more expansive form of interpersonal interaction. Accessibly written and respectfully illustrated, Face/On offers a new perspective on face transplant surgery as a way to consider the self and its representation as constantly present and evolving. Highly interdisciplinary, this study will appeal to anyone wishing to know more about critical interventions into recent medicine, makeover culture, and the beauty industry.
 

The Missing Piece is a window into the world of kidney transplant recipients and donors.  These powerful, first-hand accounts, written by patients at Michigan Medicine, provide frank glimpses into the highs and the lows experienced by those struggling with a life-altering illness.  The contributing authors discuss the coping techniques that worked and those that did not; how they knew when it was time to consider dialysis; and, how they shared their experiences and news with family, friends, and even complete strangers in a quest for a donation from a living donor. 
 
This uplifting book contains practical advice and a helpful list of resources for patients and family members.  It is a must-read for those who are facing dialysis and/or kidney transplant and for those considering becoming a living donor.  
 
The book’s editor has dedicated this book to new patients, understanding that patient-to-patient communication is a unique and effective way to improve patient and family education.  Proceeds from this book will be used to improve the patient experience at Michigan Medicine. 
 

The sudden call, the race to the hospital, the high-stakes operation—the drama of transplant surgery is well known. But what happens before and after the surgery? In Transplanting Care, Laura L. Heinemann examines the daily lives of midwestern organ transplant patients and those who care for them, from pretransplant preparations through to the long posttransplant recovery.

 

Heinemann points out that as efforts to control healthcare costs gain urgency—and as new surgical techniques, drug therapies, and home medical equipment advance—most of the transplant process now takes place at home, among kin. Indeed, the transplant system effectively depends on unpaid care labor, typically provided by spouses, parents, siblings, and others. Drawing on scores of interviews with patients, relatives, and healthcare professionals, Heinemann follows a variety of patients and loved ones as they undertake this uncertain and strenuous “transplant journey.” She also shows how these home-based caregiving efforts take place within the larger economic and political context of a paucity of resources for patients and caregivers, who ultimately must surmount numerous obstacles. The author concludes that the many snags encountered by transplant patients and loved ones make a clear case for more comprehensive health and social policy that treats care as a necessarily shared public responsibility.  

 

An illuminating look at the long transplant journey, Transplanting Care also offers broader insight into how we handle infirmity in America—and how we might do a better job of doing so. 

 

This picture book was created for young children who are in need of a solid organ transplant.  It was developed by two dedicated Social Workers at the University of Michigan Transplant Center to give these children and their families something to put them more at ease with the organ transplant process and to help them understand that they are not alone.

The bright and colorful illustrations appeal to a child’s eye.  Simple text accompanies each illustration.  A direct question (e.g. “Will I have stitches or a scar?”) on one page is answered on the facing page, beneath an original illustration (e.g. “Your doctor will use stitches or a special kind of glue to help your body heal from the surgery. After the stitches come out, you will have a scar. This will always remind you of how brave you were!”).

This book is the perfect accompaniment for young children who may need a transplant, as well as for siblings and other family members who have questions and would appreciate some assistance on how to talk about the transplant process.