Something to Think About
a blog on end of life
Those of us who work in end-of-life care walk beside people and families during one of the most intimate times of life. Because of the emotional nature of this work,...
Dame Cicely Saunders — an important and influential physician, nurse, social worker, and writer in end of life care — established a specific facility to care for those people that...
End of life care is about bonding and developing trust — not just with the patient, but with the family and the caregiver, as well...
As end of life approaches, people start looking at their life; what they’ve accomplished, not done, who they have touched, interacted with, and the relationships they have or have not built...
How do we get beyond the social conventions of strangers meeting and getting to know and trust each other in a very short time? From the time we ring the...
Working with end of life in the medical field often leaves us feeling like outliers. The medical model is to fix people. Working with dying generally isn’t addressed in training. (It’s...
Why is the patient being discharged, you ask? Is it because the patient just didn’t decline as rapidly as expected? Yes, that can be the situation...
We are not able to fix everyone. The physical body is programmed to die. It is made to die. So at some point the medical professionals will have to have...
In today’s hospice environment time spent with patients and families seem to be what agencies have the least to offer. My suggestion is the chaplain can fill in that time...
We support others in their belief system no matter what we believe. It is not about us...
Dying is not a medical event. Dying is a communal, social event. Nursing and physicians are part of care, but not the all encompassing focus. The main focus of end...
Here is my idea of a death call. I have to warn you, it may take more than 10 minutes.
I want to clarify my thoughts about hospice in today’s environment...
What happens if you are a hospice nurse or CNA or social worker and the patient or family begins a conversation about spirituality? Listen, facilitate the conversation but...
We must always respect a person’s choices. Remember, we approach this final challenge in our life in the same manner we have approached all of our challenges. If a belief...
