Tag: hospice care

EOLPodcast

Ep. 381 Hospice Help Foundation: Supporting Patients in Need with Marsha Filion

kwyattmd

Learn about a charitable foundation that helps hospice patients with the simple needs of life to bring them dignity and comfort.

My guest Marsha Filion is the Executive Director of Hospice Help Foundation, a 501(c)3 charitable organization that provides financial assistance to hospice patients in need. After training as a hospice volunteer she joined the foundation to help bring dignity and comfort to people at the end of life. She will discuss how Hospice Help Foundation functions and why many hospice patients require additional support for services not provided by Medicare, Medicaid or private insurance. Learn more at the website:

www.hhelpfoundation.org

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • Why Marsha was drawn to work as a volunteer in hospice
  • How Hospice Help Foundation began and what it does
  • The types of support offered by the foundation
  • Why additional support is necessary and important for many hospice patients
  • How patients apply for help from the foundation and who is eligible
  • Stories of people who have benefitted from the support of the foundation

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially Bob Hoffman for increasing your pledge and thanks to Ed Modell for your donation through PayPal! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 377 Center for Conscious Living and Dying: An End-of-Life Care Home with Aditi Sethi, MD

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Learn about a model for a non-medical home that is changing how we provide end-of-life care.

My guest Dr. Aditi Sethi is a hospice and palliative care physician and end-of-life doula. She is the founder and executive director of the Center for Conscious Living and Dying, a community supported end-of-life care home near Asheville NC. Aditi shares her journey toward working with death and dying and the creative inspiration that is bringing CCLD into existence. We discuss why the care home model may be the solution to many problems currently facing hospice and end-of-life care. Learn more at the website:

www.ccld.community

Watch on YouTube

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This episode includes:

  • How intuition guided Aditi’s journey to becoming a hospice and palliative care physician and an EOL doula
  • What Aditi learned from her travels in India during childhood
  • What needs to change in the medical system to improve how people die
  • How conscious living and conscious dying are intertwined
  • Practices to become more awake and aware in life and in dying
  • What is the Center for Conscious Living and Dying
  • The benefits of community-supported end-of-life homes
  • How creativity can help us devise solve the problems we face around end-of-life care
  • Resources available from the Omega Home Network to help people start EOL care homes
  • How working with Ethan Sisser at his end of life inspired Aditi’s next steps to leap into the unknown

Links mentioned in this episode:

EOLPodcast

Ep. 376 Creating a Sacred Space at the Moment of Death with Barbara Karnes, RN

kwyattmd

Learn some simple steps to honor the sacredness of the moments before and after death.

My favorite guest Barbara Karnes, RN is back for another episode where we talk about issues in hospice care. Barbara is an internationally recognized speaker and expert on end-of-life care. She is author of the popular booklet Gone from My Sight and By Your Side: A Guide for Caring for the Dying at Home, among others. Today Barbara shares some fantastic tips for how to help a family create a sacred space for the moment of their loved one’s death and just after. We discuss what hospice providers, death doulas, or family members can do to enhance meaning and reverence as the last breath is taken. These simple reminders are important to make sure that we don’t overlook this brief moment-in-time that is filled with so much significance and grace. Learn more about Barbara’s work at her website:

www.bkbooks.com

Get By Your Side here

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • What to do in the hours before a death
  • How to be a “conductor” for this final moment of life
  • Why each family member should be encouraged to say a private goodbye
  • How to prepare the body immediately after death
  • How to arrange the room immediately after a death
  • When to call the funeral home
  • What to do after the body is removed
  • How to talk about the benefits of having a visitation
  • How to help family members, including children, write letters or draw pictures to leave with loved one at the funeral
  • How to create sacred space in a hospital room or ICU

Links mentioned in this episode:

EOLPodcast

Ep. 363 Support for Hospice Nurses with Shelley Henry RN

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Learn how this hospice nurse is supporting other nurses by providing employment that allows them to improve their work-life balance.

My guest Shelley Henry has been a registered nurse for over 30 years, with 20 of those years served in hospice. She is the creator of the popular Instagram channel For Hospice Nurses where she shares quick video tips from her many years of experience to make work a little easier for her colleagues. Shelley is also the founder of the Amity Group, which she started with the primary goal of bringing experienced hospice nurses back to the field while maintaining a fulfilling personal life. She discusses how her innovative company helps hospice nurses create the work life they desire while filling in the gaps for hospice companies. Learn more at her website:

www.amitystaffing.com

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • Why Shelley was drawn to work in hospice
  • The rewards and challenges of being a hospice nurse
  • Why some hospice nurses leave the field
  • Shelley’s top tips for hospice nurses
  • The issues that hospice nurses are most concerned about now
  • How redundant documentation is causing stress and wasting precious time for hospice nurses
  • Why Shelley created Amity Staffing
  • How this model benefits nurses who still want to work in hospice but need more control over their schedule
  • How hospices are benefitting from having well-trained contract nurses available to fill in the gaps

Links mentioned in this episode:

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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu and to those who have bought me a coffee and made a donation through Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 360 Creating Community for Death Doulas with Jo-Anne Haun and Karen Hendrickson

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Learn why community is important for all of us as we work to improve the end of life in our society.

Today I’m welcoming two guests to the podcast: Jo-Anne Haun and Karen Hendrickson who are the co-founders of the Death Doula Network of BC. Jo-Anne is a professional end-of-life doula, hospice volunteer, and therapy clown. Karen is a professional coach, a licensed Willow EOL Educator™, and end-of-life doula. They share their experiences in creating an online community for death doulas, why it’s important that we form collaborative networks right now, and how everyone benefits when we work together. Learn more at their website:

www.ddnbc.com

Watch on YouTube

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This episode includes:

  • Why Jo-Anne and Karen decided to create DDNBC
  • How the pandemic helped inspire this online network
  • How facing death can help us truly find quality in life
  • Why preparing in advance can help us cope with a terminal diagnosis
  • The value of humor to help us shift energy and cope with difficult situations
  • Why the role of the death doula is essential at this time in our history to fill in gaps in end-of-life care
  • Doula communities allow creative potential to arise for each individual and foster collaboration
  • The need for community-wide education about loss and end-of-life issues

Links mentioned in this episode:

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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, and to those who have bought me a coffee and made a donation through Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 356 What Keeps Me Up at Night (about Hospice and Palliative Care) with Ira Byock MD

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Dr. Ira Byock takes an honest and challenging look at worrisome issues within the hospice and palliative care field.

My guest today is Dr. Ira Byock who is a leading palliative care physician, author, and public advocate for improving care through the end of life. He is the Founder and Chief Medical Officer for the Institute for Human Caring of Providence St. Joseph Health. He is a frequent guest on this podcast and the author of Dying Well, The Four Things that Matter Most, and The Best Care Possible. Today he shares some of the concerns he has about current issues in hospice and palliative care. Learn more about his books and his work at the website:

www.irabyock.org

Watch on YouTube

Read the transcript

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • The history of hospice programs and how and why they began
  • For-profit hospices now outnumber non-profit hospices by nearly 3 to 1
  • Problems with for-profit hospices include poor staffing, patients are less likely to see a doctor or social worker, 10% fewer nursing visits
  • For-profits extract up to 20% margin from patient care and make it hard for non-profits to stay in business
  • Concerns about sending patients home for hospice care without providing training to family members
  • Staff are burning out because of moral distress and because of excessive case loads which are being imposed for the sake of profit
  • For-profit hospices are being traded on Wall Street and private equity firms are also buying up hospices
  • How a focus on marketing and “branding” is causing palliative care to distance itself from hospice and from death and dying
  • Why we have to be brave enough to talk about and deal with the things that people in our society are afraid of
  • Why the palliative care “brand” should be providing the best care possible through the end of life (instead of “at the end of life”)
  • What to do:
    • Don’t trust blindly – ask questions and be discerning
    • Don’t lose your outrage – speak up when you see poor care being given
    • Be strong advocates for one another
    • Support community-based non-profit hospices

Links mentioned in this episode:

  • Pre-order All the Flowers of the Mountain by Christina Holbrook here (and thank you!)

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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially to my newest donor Mary E. Moriarty! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 354 The Hospice Journey: A Step-by-Step Guide with Barbara Karnes RN

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Learn about the basics of hospice care, when to consider it, how to talk about it with others, and what to expect during the dying process.

My guest Barbara Karnes RN is an internationally recognized author, speaker, thought leader and expert on end of life care. She is the author of the “little blue hospice book” Gone From My Sight: The Dying Experience, which has sold over 30 million copies worldwide in 12 different languages. Today Barbara shares her insights and stories about the hospice journey for patients and their families and walks us through each step of the process. Learn more about her work at her website:

www.bkbooks.com

Get her books here

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • When is it time to consider hospice
  • Why hospice care is a special type of medical care
  • How to find a good hospice
  • What it takes to care for a loved one at home
  • What hospice does and doesn’t provide for families
  • How to talk to a loved one about hospice
  • What to expect as death draws near
  • How hospice provides comfort and pain management

Links mentioned in this episode:

Buy me a coffee

Donate on Paypal

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially to Jan Wessel for increasing your pledge! Also thank you to Thilda Zorn for your Paypal donation and Bob Hoffman for buying me a coffee! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 349 Why My Family Chose Hospice with Kathleen Vallee Stein

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Learn about the hospice experience from the perspective of a family member.

My guest Kathleen Vallee Stein worked for the California Department of Aging and has written numerous articles on caring for aging patents for more than twenty years. Her work has been published in the Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Daily News, Pasadena Star-News, Orange County Register, and the Jewish Journal. Recently she has written a book about her family’s experiences as her father faced the end of life called Loving Choices, Peaceful Passing: Why My Family Chose Hospice, and today she’ll share insights from that hospice journey with her father. Learn more at her website:

www.valleeview.com

Get the book here

Read the transcript

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How her family made the decision to choose hospice for her father
  • The challenges of having conversations about hospice with a loved one at the end of life
  • How the family had to bring up hospice with the doctor initially but he was helpful after that point
  • The relief experienced by the entire family and the patient once they made the decision to stop curative treatment and to enroll in hospice
  • Negative misperceptions about hospice are an obstacle to early admission
  • How her father’s temperament changed for the better after going on hospice
  • Why Kathleen hired in-home professional caregivers even though her parents were initially opposed to it
  • How they managed their parents’ financial issues as a family
  • Dealing with old family conflicts that arise at the end of life
  • How the hospice chaplain made a big difference for her father
  • The many positive surprises that arose during her father’s end of life
  • How they planned the funeral and made decisions about disposition
  • How she and her mother grew closer through the challenges of caring for her father at the end of life
  • Advice to those considering hospice for a loved one
  • Hope and “precious time” with her father in his last days

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 340 Caregiver Crisis: Meeting the Needs of the Future with Jessica Zitter MD

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Learn about the current crisis in family caregiving and what you can do to help.

My guest Dr. Jessica Zitter is a specialist in Critical Care and Palliative Care medicine and the author of the book Extreme Measures: Finding a Better Path to the End of Life. Her work is featured in the documentary Extremis as well as her new film, Caregiver: A Love Story. Today she discusses the current crisis situation for family caregivers who are drastically overworked with little support. This is one of the most important topics we can address for the future! Learn more at these websites:

www.jessicazitter.com

www.caregiveralovestory.com

Read the transcript here. Watch video on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • What inspired Jessica to create Caregiver: A Love Story
  • How film is a compelling medium for encouraging people to change their behavior
  • How medical providers are often unaware of the stresses facing family caregivers
  • More people are now dying at home than in the hospital which means there is huge need for caregivers
  • 1 out of 5 Americans is caring for a loved one at home
  • The burden experienced by caregivers is physical, mental and financial
  • We need a workplace culture that supports caregivers
  • Family caregivers are providing billions of dollars of unpaid work for an average of 4.5 years
  • Hospitals and doctors are doing a poor job of preparing caregivers for the tasks they will face – The Care Act requires them to provide education (but it’s not happening)
  • Hospice staffs are also burdened by the caregiver crisis
  • We also need to build up and support professional paid caregivers

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 339 Feng Shui for Hospice Patients with Char Tarashanti

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Learn how paying attention to the small details of the surroundings can make a big difference in the wellbeing of hospice patients.

My guest Char Tarashanti is a retired Hospice Chaplain and Certified Feng Shui Consultant. She shares how the principles of Feng Shui can be applied to the care of hospice patients and improve the physical environment as well as the harmony and balance of the space. Her practical suggestions make it simple for any of us to create more pleasing and appealing surroundings for people at the end of life. Download her handout here:

Handout

Read Transcript

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • What is Feng Shui
  • How death is viewed within the Feng Shui tradition
  • How Char became interested in Feng Shui and in hospice work
  • The benefits for patient and caregiver of creating a more harmonious space
  • The essential elements of Feng Shui and how to apply them to a hospice room
  • How to manage clutter and get better organized in a home hospice setting
  • The two most important features of Feng Shui for hospice patients
  • How caregivers should communicate about any changes being made in the home before beginning the process

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my new patrons Aby Fy and Anne Janssen and to Richard Schneider for increasing your monthly pledge! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 337 The Hospice Doctor’s Widow: A Caregiver’s Journal with Jennifer O’Brien

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Learn about a beautiful, artistic journal that explores the caregiver’s journey through dying and grief.

My guest this week is Jennifer O’Brien, author of the creative, gorgeous journal: The Hospice Doctor’s Widow. She discusses her journey as she cared for her husband who was a hospice and palliative care physician diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. We talk about grief and loss and caregiving in this intimate conversation. Learn more at her website:

www.hospicedrswidow.com

Get the book here

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • Why this book is ideal for caregivers and people dealing with grief
  • How Jennifer created the art for the book
  • How Jennifer incorporated her husband’s wisdom into the book
  • What is “Precious Time” and how did that inform the way she and Bob spent his last days of life together
  • Navigating anticipatory grief for caregivers
  • Why the patient and the caregiver are going through two different processes
  • Why the survivors’ journey can be more difficult than the patient’s journey
  • What is the Triad of Certainty
  • Advice for caregivers
  • The At Peace Toolkit – A Guide to Being at Peace with End of Life

‘Precious Time’ is when you say what you need to say and don’t say what you will later regret.”

from The Hospice Doctor’s Widow by Jennifer O’Brien
  • A Year of Reading Dangerously – Register here
  • Get the At Peace Toolkit from Jennifer here

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my new patrons G. Thackrey and Mary Susan Graham! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 332 Technology Advances for End-of-Life Care with Jeremy Powell

kwyattmd

Learn about exciting new technology that promises to help more patients be referred for hospice and palliative care in a timely manner.

My guest Jeremy Powell is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Acclivity Health Solutions, a company that aims to transform the management of advanced illness while honoring the patient’s dignity, goals and values. He discusses how technology can help us solve some of the greatest challenges we face in the provision of end-of-life care and why we should embrace technology rather than feel intimidated by it. Learn more at the website:

www.acclivityhealth.com

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • Current healthcare challenges (including hospice and palliative care) that urgently need to be addressed
  • How COVID-19 has impacted these challenges
  • What technology is being developed to address the challenges facing hospice and palliative care
  • How Machine Learning can provide data that leads to more timely referrals to hospice and palliative care
  • Why lack of interoperability in electronic health records is a deterrent to good patient care
  • How the “3rd Platform” for EHR’s will deconstruct the silos that have existed in healthcare
  • How COVID-19 helped accelerate acceptance of telemedicine
  • Why it’s necessary to look at healthcare finances in order to ensure the survival of hospice in the future
  • Why a technology-driven approach to care does not threaten but can enhance patient-centered care at end of life

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my new patrons Mary Ganapol and Katherine Pettus! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 327 Warm Water: The Last Act of Compassion in Hospice Care with Pepper Cappuccio RN

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Learn about the unique stories gathered by a hospice nurse who works primarily on-call during after-hours shifts.

My guest Pepper Cappuccio is a registered nurse who has worked in hospice care for over 12 years. As an on-call nurse who frequently works evenings and weekends he is often present at the time of death for patients or shortly thereafter. He is the author of the book Warm Water: The Last Act of Compassion, which consists of stories of patients and families he has helped throughout the years as they navigate the last hours of life. He discusses the uniqueness of his work and shares stories about experiences in hospice that have changed his life. Learn more at his website:

www.peppercappuccio.com

Get Warm Water:The Last Act of Compassion here

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How Pepper was inspired to become a hospice nurse
  • Why he is willing to take night call for his hospice and how it differs from field work during the day
  • How he uses music as a source of calming or inspiration in his work
  • How he chose the stories he included in the book to represent a cross-section of patients served by hospice
  • What it’s like to be a male nurse in a traditionally female profession
  • Why families need support during the hours shortly after the death of a loved one
  • What Pepper has learned from his hospice work and what he hopes readers will take away from his book
  • Special stories of synchronicity from the book

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my new patron Cindy Spence! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 319 At the Bedside: Tools for Caring for the Dying with Gabrielle Elise Jimenez

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Learn how this hospice nurse and end-of-life doula is making a difference by sharing the tools she has learned.

My guest Gabrielle Elise Jimenez is a hospice nurse, end-of-life doula and conscious dying educator. She is also the author of three books intended to teach others how to provide care to their own dying loved ones. She talks about the tools she feels are most important for caregivers to learn and she also shares information about her Facebook page that exploded with new members when people started posting about their grief. Learn more about her books and courses at her website:

www.thehospiceheart.net

Get her books here

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How Gabby ended up becoming a hospice nurse and an end-of-life doula
  • The tools needed to care for a dying loved one at home
  • How to help families with grief in hospice
  • How Gabby tapped into the huge need for grief support that exists in our world right now
  • Advice for healthcare professionals who need to recognize their own grief
  • How to stay in balance while doing emotionally challenging work
  • The impact of COVID on hospice workers
  • 3 things everyone should know about death and dying
  • How to live our best lives by recognizing that we will die one day

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu! Your contributions make all the difference.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 292 Life Review: The Hospice Musical – Life, Love and Loss with Benjamin Kintisch

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Learn about a touching and humorous new musical that focuses on the stories of hospice patients and how you can join the audience.

My guest Benjamin Kintisch is a Cantor, hospice chaplain, and music teacher when he’s not performing on stage. He has loved singing and performing since childhood and has had used his skills to create a musical inspired by his experiences with hospice patients. He shares his creative process in writing Life Review: The Hospice Musical and performs two songs from the musical to give us a preview! Learn more at the website:

www.lifereviewmusical.com

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How a hospice chaplain became inspired to write a musical
  • The power of both stories and music to open the heart
  • Why music ends up being a good format for telling the stories of hospice patients
  • An overview of Life Review: The Hospice Musical
  • How Ben recognized that the musical needed to contain lightness and humor
  • Coping with the reality that ultimately we can’t fix people
  • Ben’s experiences “workshopping” the musical
  • Feedback from cast members and audiences
  • How Life Review can be used for education and discussion purposes
  • Goals for the musical currently and post-COVID

Links mentioned in this episode:

  • SAVE THE DATE for the upcoming Virtual Cabaret Show of Life Review: The Hospice Musical with Ben Kintisch on Sunday April 25, 2021 at 4 pm Pacific/7 pm Eastern
  • Listen to the unedited interview on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lvLuVXliqlU
  • Sign up for the 2021 online reading group A Year of Reading Dangerously at this link
  • Support your local bookstore by buying my books on Bookshop and Indiebound: 7 Lessons for Living from the Dying and The Journey from Ego to Soul
  • Subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Google, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Stitcher Radio
  • Check out the Series I’ve recorded in the past here
  • Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu and get access to the EOLU mug: “Mind if we talk about death?” (only Patrons can purchase it). PLUS get our new bonuses: the monthly EOL News Update, movie reviews from 2 Doctors and a Movie, and automatic access to A Year of Reading Dangerously!

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest supporter Trina Wacasey and Suzanne O’Brien for upping your pledge! Your contributions make all the difference!

EOLPodcast, Hospice

Ep. 258 The Heart of Hospice: Supporting the End-of-Life Journey with Helen Bauer and Jerry Fenter

kwyattmd

Learn about the issues facing hospice care in the US and how the “heart” of hospice is essential for end-of-life care.

My guests today, Helen Bauer RN and Jerry Fenter, are the hosts of the popular podcast The Heart of Hospice. Having worked as a hospice nurse and hospice chaplain, these two are passionate about offering education and support to anyone who needs information about end-of-life care. Their projects include advance care planning, resources for professional and personal caregivers, and consultations with hospices about staff education. Learn more about their work at their website:

www.theheartofhospice.com

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • Why Helen and Jerry started The Heart of Hospice
  • The challenge of educating the public and medical professionals about the benefits of hospice care
  • How COVID-19 is impacting hospice care right now
  • Other difficulties facing hospice care in the US
  • Reasons to be hopeful about the future of hospice
  • Self-care tips for professional and personal caregivers
  • The importance of memorial services for hospice staff to process grief
  • Resources available from their website

POEM: Compassion by Miller Williams

"Have compassion for everyone you meet 
even if they don’t want it. What seems conceit, 
bad manners or cynicism is always a sign 
of things no ears have heard, no eyes have seen. 
You do not know what wars are going on 
down there where the spirit meets the bone.”

From -  Healing the Divide: Poems of Kindness and Connection - 
edited by James Crews

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu! Your contributions make all the difference!

End of Life, EOLPodcast

Ep. 242 Death Care at Home and at a Distance for Families and EOL Doulas with Merilynne Rush

kwyattmd

Learn about important resources for caring for loved ones and patients at home and far away.

My guest Merilynne Rush is a former hospice nurse who now practices as an End-of-Life Doula mentor, Home Funeral Guide, Green Burial Educator, Death Cafe host and more. Merilynne joins me today to talk about safe practices for home funerals during the COVID-19 pandemic, how to stay connected to our ill and dying loved ones, and she offers many resources for eol doulas at a distance, as well. Learn more at her website:

www.thedyingyear.org

Listen here:

Death Care at Home and at a Distance

This episode includes:

  • What a home funeral consists of and why consider one now
  • Home funeral resources:
  • How to conduct a safe home funeral during the COVID-19 pandemic
  • The option of live-streaming Virtual Wakes, Visitations, or Funerals
  • Tips for staying connected to our loved ones at a distance
    • Legacy projects
    • Leave written instructions for distributing possessions after death
    • Voice recording of messages for loved ones
    • Window visit
    • Technology
  • Why early hospice admissions are important for hospital and long-term care patients
  • Tips for EOL Doulas to stay in touch with patients when visits aren’t possible (download handout below)
  • Why Advance Care Planning is essential right now
  • Advance Care Planning facilitator training
Tips-for-EOL-Doulas-at-a-DistanceDownload

Other links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu! Your contributions make all the difference!

End of Life, EOLPodcast

Ep. 222 The Benefits of Medical Hypnosis at the End of Life with Roger Moore

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Learn how hypnosis can help dying patients, their loved ones, and their medical providers find greater ease and less stress as they cope with the end of life.

podcastMoore

My guest Roger Moore is a medical hypnotherapist who frequently works with patients at the end of life and their caregivers. He’ll discuss how he utilizes hypnosis to help ease symptoms for his patients and share tools that all of us can use to deal with stress. Learn more about Roger’s work at his website:

www.hypnosishealthinfo.com

Download “Orange Blossom” mp3 here

Listen here:

 

This episode includes:

  • What is “medical hypnosis”
  • What happens in a typical session of hypnosis
  • The “wiggle” technique for returning to the present moment
  • How hypnosis benefits both patient and caregiver
  • How hypnosis helps with the fear of death and dying
  • The “flow through” technique to prevent taking on the suffering of the patient
  • How self-hypnosis tools can help healthcare providers deal with stress, grief and guilt
  • Hypnosis as a tool for learning mindfulness
  • When is the best time to recommend hypnosis as an end-of-life tool
  • Hypnosis can help patients reduce their need for pain medication
  • “Orange Blossom” recording for stress relief

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest Patrons: Gail Clemson, and Kathy Bates; your contributions make all the difference!

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Hospice

Ep. 221 Hospice and Palliative Care: Know the Difference

kwyattmd

Understand the basic facts about hospice and palliative care, what they have in common, and what makes them different.

PodcastHospicePall

In this “EOL 101” episode I explain the difference between hospice and palliative care. This is an important piece of information for people making choices around end-of-life care and an area where there are many misconceptions. We all need to be well-versed in EOL options for our own needs and also so that we can help educate others. I’ll offer additional “explainer” episodes in the future!

Listen here:

 

This episode includes:

  • Who is on the palliative care (and hospice) team
  • Whole-person care is offered by both services
  • Who is eligible for palliative care
  • How and why to enroll in palliative care
  • The criteria for admission to hospice
    • Terminal diagnosis
    • 6 months from end of life
    • Forego curative treatment
  • Both hospice and palliative care provide symptom-based, comfort care that focuses on quality of life
  • The main differences between hospice and palliative care (including financial considerations)
  • Why you should choose both types of care if possible (first palliative then transfer to hospice)
  • Why some patients may not choose hospice care but should still opt for palliative care

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest Patrons: Lisa Monroe, Deb Pazderka, Debbie Henkemeyer, and Molly Byock; your contributions make all the difference!

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Hospice

Ep. 216 Hospice Under Threat: How to Protect Patient-Centered End-of-Life Care with Jeff Lycan

kwyattmd

Learn about the “dark side” of the hospice business and how to identify and support organizations that are truly patient-centered.

PodcastEOLU19Lycan

My guest Jeffrey Lycan has spent the last 21 years of his  hospice and palliative care nursing career as an advocate for improving care and quality of life for patients at the end of life. He will discuss the recent alarming reports issued by the OIG (Office of the Inspector General) about instances of negligent care in some hospices, the worrisome trend toward profit-centered rather than patient-centered care, and how to support community-based hospices that are preserving Cicely Saunders’ legacy of end-of-life care. Learn about the Why It Matters Campaign he has started:

www.ohioshospice.org/whyitmatters

Listen here:

 

This episode includes:

  • The two OIG reports from July 2019 that exposed fraudulent and negligent care in some hospices (see links below)
  • What a “deficiency” in a hospice survey actually means
  •  Business changes in the hospice industry that have contributed to flaws in the care being offered
  • How some hospices now focus on profit first rather than patient care first
  • How profiteering harms the hospice system, patients and staff
  • New MedPAC proposal for lowering the annual per patient cap for hospices and why it may be a good thing
  • How consumers can choose the best hospice for their loved ones
  • How to register a complaint about hospice care
  • The campaign Why It Matters: Preserving the Legacy of Hospice

As originally championed by Cicely Saunders, MD, the founder of the modern hospice movement, the hospice model of care was based on providing end-of-life care with both compassion and science, and offering this care through engaged community-based, not- for-profit programs.

-from Why It Matters Website

ANNOUNCING:

FREE Webinar with Jane Barton: The Loneliness Epidemic

Register here.

BartonWebinarloneliness

Links mentioned in this episode:

If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes! Thanks again to all supporters on Patreon.com/eolu, especially Susan Baumhammer, your contribution means  everything to me!