End of Life Resources

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Welcome to the End-of-Life Resources page; a library of information meant to assist physicians, caregivers, and patients find the information they need to better carry out end-of-life care.  Can't find what you're looking for?  Check back in soon becuse we are adding resources daily to continue populating the end-of-life resource categories. 

You may use the categories below to browse topics and resources or use the "Search EOLR" function on the left sidebar. 

"Do not punctuate the end of your life with a senseless act of brutality!"
Words have power. Language has power. The words we use may comfort or shock, allay or provoke, sooth or batter. Words ...
"Fighting On" Deciding how and when to continue care at the end of life New England Journal of Medicine
Fighting on gives a real-life account of the challenges that come with end of life care.  Should care be prolonged?...
"Vesta” Performed Across Country
This Bryan Harnetiaux play offers a warm and often funny exploration of a family’s struggle with a variety of end-of-...
# 013 Determining Prognosis in Advanced Cancer, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
Background:  How long do I have, Doc? is among the most common questions asked by cancer patients, especially when...
# 017 Patient-Centered Interviewing, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
Clinical Case:  You admit Mary, a new patient, to the hospital. Mary has end-stage, metastatic pancreatic cancer. She...
# 021 Hope and Truth Telling, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
This Fast Fact discusses the difficult balance between maintaining hope and truth telling, especially as it applies to...
# 022 Writing a Condolence Letter, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
Introduction:  One of the most meaningful acts of kindness you can do for a mourner is to write a letter of condolence...
# 026 The Explanatory Model, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
Introduction:  Have you ever had this experience – you are talking with a patient about some care option and you...
# 029 Responding to Patient Emotion, 2nd ed Medical College of Wisconsin (EPERC)
Introduction:  Listening to, recognizing, and responding to patient emotions is an essential skill for physicians who...
A communication approach for oncologists: understanding patient coping, communicating about bad news, palliative care and hospice Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network : JNCCN
This abstract from the Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network talks about the importance of communication...
A Doctor's Blog: Improving Palliative Care in the ED Pallimed Hospice and Palliative Care Blog
This recent blog posting by Dr. Rosielle begins an interesting dialogue on palliative care in the emergency room.  His...
Bridget Duffy on the Patient Experience: Gel Health Conference 2009
This Gel Video is of Bridget Duffy speaking at the 2009 Gel Health conference.  She talks about her recent experience...
CancerDoc Blog: "Denmark"
Saturday, March 20, 2010 "Denmark" R.N. just died. She was my first breast cancer patient out of fellowship and...
Chemotherapy at the end of life
The following is a Blog entry from Drew Rosielle MD, posted on Pallimed. It's an interesting reflection on an article from...
Cunniff-Dixon Letter: Carley Cunniff
  Near the end of her life, Carley Cunniff wrote this letter with the assistance of Dr. Peter Dixon and her health care...
Dad's Legacy web article
Texas geriatrician Jerry Winakur wrote an essay titled "What are we going to do with Dad?" in the July/August...
Determinants of medical students' perceived preparation to perform end-of-life care, quality of end-of-life care education, and attitudes toward end-of-life care. Journal of Palliative Medicine
This is an important article and one that is close to home for me.  Working in palliative care and living with two...
Dying with Dignity The Hastings Center Report
This article by Dr. Ira Byock is from the March/April Hastings Center Report.  Dr. Byock speaks in prose about dignity...
Ethics Conflicts in Rural Communities: End-of-life Decision-Making (PDF) Dartmouth College Medical School Department of Community and Family Medicine
Caring for people at the end of their lives can be one of the most challenging and personally rewarding aspects of primary...
Exploring the Harmful Effects of Health Care Journal of the American Medical Association
The following is an extract of an article published in JAMA that discusses the healthcare delivery system: "While...
Gel Health Conference 2009 Gel Health
The Gel Health conference took place last week in New York where many speakers engaged listeners about "the patient...
GeriPal: The Opposite of Love
The Opposite of Love Posted: 17 May 2010 The Emergency Department phoned my office right before lunch. I was on call for our...
GP and nurses' perceptions of how after hours care for people receiving palliative care at home could be improved: a mixed methods study BMC Palliative Care
 This study was conducted in Australia and addresses an important subject within palliative medicine:  home...
Improving End of Life Care: Why Has It Been So Difficult? The Hastings Center: Special Report
This report contains 10 essays that present a synoptic overview of the most important developments in end-of-life decision...
Michael Christensen: Co-founder, Big Apple Circus; founder, Clown Care GEL (Good Experience Live) Health Video
Visiting children and their families in the hospital, Clown Care founder Michael Christensen has learned to focus on "...
Referring a Patient and Family to High-Quality Palliative Care at the Close of Life Journal of the American Medical Association
The following is a JAMA article abstract:  "Palliative care services are increasingly available to primary care...
Shuffling In Grandmother’s Footsteps web article
Phyllis Richman (Washington Post’s food critic from 1976 to 2000 and author of "Who’s Afraid of...
StoryCorps Audio Podcast: Danielle and Gabrielle Hall remember their mother Martha, who died of breast cancer in 2003.
This is a nice story of two daughters remembering one of their last meals with their mother.  It is a wonderful example...
StoryCorps Audio Podcast: Dr. John Bancroft, a pediatrician, tells his daughter Carolyn about a memorable patient.
In this audio podcast from StoryCorps, a father recounts to his daughter one of his most memorable days as a Doctor when a...
StoryCorps Audio Podcast: Sarafina Viviano asks her mother, Dana, about her work as a cancer nurse.
This is an audio podcast from StoryCorps,  a non-profit organization devoted to honoring one another's lives through...
StoryCorps Audio Podcast: “The saddest day of my life was the day my father died.”
In this audio podcast from StoryCorps, Tom Morgan talks to his friend Tracy Ross about his father's death and the decision...
Until the last breath: exploring the concept of hope for parents and health care professionals during a child's serious illness Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Participants in this study were asked standardized questions related to their definition of hope, its role in medical...
Video: CBS 60 Minutes, "The Cost of Dying"
CBS's 60 minutes recently spent time with the Palliative Care Team at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Hospital in Hanover, NH filming...
Video: Dr. Bridget Duffy from the Cleveland Clinic Speaks about the Patient Experience Gel Health
This is a great video of Dr. Bridget Duffy speaking at a Gel conference in 2008.  At the time Dr. Duffy was the Chief...
Vital Decisions
Vital Decisions is a health care consulting group focused on helping patients and families better understand and communicate...