Did the AIDS Epidemic Set Us Up To Handle COVID-19?
There are many of the same circumstances with today’s coronavirus as we faced with HIV/AIDS in the early years— lack of medical knowledge, lack of guidance, and fear. I think...
Something to Think About: a blog on end of life
hospice nurses
We've Just Begun Social Distancing~ Here Are My Thoughts
Isolation from others is teaching me this about my self ——- I do a lot for others, for their thoughts of me, why else do I wear makeup? Get dressed?...
HOSPICE DEATH CALL~ How To Comfort A Family You've Never Met
We do this all the time. We enter tense situations where people are frightened and unsure, with people who have never seen us before. This is what we do: We create...
Developing End of Life Expertise
You have to walk the walk before you can talk the talk. Learn from your patient/family interactions. At the same time read everything you can get your hands on...
Setting Up a Hospice Program
...You really don't need a doctor or nurse at the bedside when someone is dying. You need someone who understands the natural way people die and can educate and guide...
WORKING TOGETHER, Hospice & Nursing Facilities
Hospice has worked with nursing facilities for many years now. Our relationship and interactions with patients and their families is now better understood and better defined. That said, some nursing facilities...
I Hear You, But I Don't Understand
...I remember being with my mother in my hospice Medical Director’s office. He was explaining to my mother his medical findings as they related to her illness. I, being a...
My Personal Integrity Was Wounded Tonight
When hospice began it was outside of the medical model. It provided end of life care based on quality, not quantity, of life. It recognized when physical healing couldn't be...
Where Is The Hospice I Know and Love?
Hospice can not take the experience and sadness of a loved one dying away. Our goal is to help the family create a sacred experience, to help their loved one...
A Hospice With Integrity
Be the best hospice you can possibly be, provide the highest quality of care with the most compassionate, caring staff your area has to offer. Build a reputation within the...
The Balancing Act of Caring for the Dying
For healthcare professionals it is often a balancing act to care for patients and then deal with the sense of futility that is triggered when they are doing their job...
DYING Young or Old, The Signs Are The Same
There are other signs of approaching death that indicate a person with a disease (at any age) has weeks to live...