Last Comforts

Did you know that November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month? It is, thanks to the efforts of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. It’s a month devoted to broadening public awareness about the outstanding and much-needed care that hospice organizations provide for the very ill and their caregivers.

So I thought I’d do my part. I’m excited to announce the upcoming publication of my book, “Last Comforts: Notes From the Forefront of Late-Life Care.” Why did I write this book and start this blog?

I was drawn to hospice care because its caring and profoundly respectful philosophy and practice offers physical and emotional comfort, support and kindness to the dying and their families. My family experienced that first-hand with my mother’s last illness, a stark contrast five years after my father’s more conventional medicalized, nightmarish last months. So when I had an opportunity to sign on for hospice volunteer training at Holy Name Medical Center, I took it.

“Last Comforts” was born when one nagging question kept arising early in my journey as a hospice volunteer. Why were people coming into hospice care so late in the course of their illness? That question led to many others that rippled out beyond hospice care. Are there better alternatives to conventional skilled nursing home operations? How are physicians and nurses educated about advanced illness and end-of-life care? What are more effective ways of providing dementia care? What are the unique challenges of minority and LGBT people? What is the role of popular media in our death-denying culture? What has been the impact of public policy decisions about palliative and hospice care?

The book is part memoir of lessons learned throughout my experiences with patients and families as a hospice volunteer; part reporting about the remarkable pathfinders and programs in palliative and late-life care; and part call to action. I  encourage readers – particularly her fellow baby boomers — not only to make their wishes and goals clear to friends and family, but also to become advocates for better care in the broader community.

It’s no secret that care at the end of people’s lives right now is mostly fragmented, uncoordinated, often futile and unsustainable. But without question, it can be managed far better for those who are ill as well as for their caregivers. I’m hoping that “Last Comforts” – and this blog — will help shed light on how we can help make that happen.