Hospice Benefit in Last Months Hospice care is a benefit for individuals in their last months of life. Hospice regulations say that if a physician’s best estimate is that the individual has 6 months or less to live if his or her disease follows its typical course, that person is eligible for hospice services. Hospice […]
Grief & Wounded Warriors
Wounded Warriors I have been especially moved lately by television commercials I have seen about wounded warriors. A poignant story is shared about a soldier who has been severely injured in the line of duty. The effect of the injury on this individual’s family is shared as well. Some amazing examples of human determination combined with what to me […]
Life, Death, Hospice & Holidays
The Last Christmas I am reflecting this Christmas Eve on the people my hospice serves. Most of our patients are celebrating the last Christmas they will ever have. Families are poignantly aware that at this time next year, their loved one will not be with them. I think that for some, this thought must be […]
What is Palliative Care?
In presentations, I always describe ‘palliative care’ as a ‘fifty-dollar word for comfort care’’. In truth, it means so much more, and I’m not sure I can do it justice. A friend and colleague believes palliative care is the answer to all the woes of our health care system. I agree with her. It’s actually […]
Futile Care and Advance Directives
Futile Health Care The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines ‘futile’ as ‘having no result or effect; pointless or useless’. On a rainy day in November, after a week of early winter snow that has since melted, it is futile for me to mop my kitchen floor when three dogs continuously insist on going outdoors to play in […]
Hospice & Suffering at the End of Life: The Brittany Maynard Story
Brittany Maynard Brittany Maynard was 29 years old when she died. On November 1, 2014, she took a lethal dose of medication with the intention of ending her life. She had been diagnosed with an incurable cancer of the brain on January 1, 2014 and in April was told her life expectancy was 6 months. […]
Does Grief Have a Purpose?
Receiving the bad news Years ago, on September 5th, I got the call just before 10 p.m. My friend and skydiving instructor Dennis had been killed in an ultralight accident that afternoon. It was Labor Day and my brother was calling with the news. My initial reaction was physical. I doubled over quickly, as though […]