A child who has to go through the woods in the dark will still be scared even if you prove to him a hundred times that there is no danger. He is not afraid of something specific that he could name, but rather he experiences in the dark the insecurity, the vulnerability, and the eeriness […]
what in fact is death? Read More »
“There is an infinitely better way to address the needs of people with serious illnesses [than physician-assisted suicide]. Our society should embrace what Pope John Paul II called “the way of love and true mercy”—a readiness to surround patients with love, support, and companionship, providing the assistance needed to ease their physical, emotional, and spiritual
Mary Ann Walsh discusses two key components of caring for the seriously ill … ” … people have two fears when confronting end of life: pain and isolation. Hospice and palliative care address them both. Advances in medications mean pain can be controlled. Medical staff can handle that. Dealing with fear of isolation lies in
a call to community … Read More »
That time of year thou mayst in me behold When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang Upon those boughs which shake against the cold, Bare ruin’d choirs, where late the sweet birds sang. In me thou seest the twilight of such day As after sunset fadeth in the west, Which by and by
… Fineberg etal present an empirically derived model of family conferences. Core aspects include conference organization, negotiation, personal stance and emotional work … all working toward meaningful connections with those involved. “Emotion work during the family conference appears to function as a crucial gatekeeper to achieving the desired outcome for the meeting.” Fineberg etal. Communication with Families
core aspects of family conferences … Read More »
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker, And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker, And in short, I was afraid. —T. S. Eliot, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” Christopher Hitchens writes about the loss of his voice in his continuing journey with esophageal cancer … “In
hitchens loses his (physical) voice … Read More »
… Benedict XVI in a recent television interview answers a mother’s question about the state of her comatose son’s soul … … Certainly his soul is still present in his body. The situation, perhaps, is like that of a guitar whose strings have been broken and therefore can no longer play. The instrument of the
Jesus’ Resurrection points beyond history but has left a footprint within history. Benedict XVI – Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week p. 274
a footprint within history … Read More »
Derek Doyle in his book The Platform Ticket … Perhaps it is only when you have worked in a hospice that you truly appreciate … that it is not death which people fear but the manner of dying, whether it be the pain or the fear or, we are often told, the loneliness. Let me
