Learning objectives:
- Be able to describe some of the emotional responses individuals experience when dealing with death and dying.
- Learn about strategies that can be helpful in supporting someone who is facing death.
- Understand different ways of approaching the topic of death with a loved one who is grieving.
- Hear about the importance of remembering the lives of individuals both before and after they pass.
Abstract:
How do we deal with death and dying? What are the forms that grief can take? In this podcast, our guests discuss their experiences with the death of family members, friends, and even strangers. From the perspectives of family members who have lost a parent or child, to hospice workers who see death as part of their daily work, we hear about the many different ways that individuals experience and process grief. Our guests provide examples of what we can do to honor those in the dying process and after they pass.
Outline:
- [1:30] Bobby Payzant on providing hospice care in the prison system.
- [10:32] Ted on the guilt of not saying goodbye to a dying parent.
- [22:00] Katie Murray on coping with the loss of a child.
- [42:00] Professor Loring Conant on being a hospice doctor and how to talk about feelings about death and dying.
Discussion questions:
- Did our guests’ stories change the way you think about death and dying? Why or why not?
- Have you faced the loss of a loved one or patient/client? If so, how did listening to this podcast affect you?
- The traditional teaching about grief is that individuals go through 5 stages- denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Our understanding, however, of the ways we experience grief is changing. Do you feel there is a common progression of emotions that is shared among grievers?
- Explain what you think Bobby Paysant means when he says, “there is a connectedness between pain and healing.”
Links to additional resources:
End of Life Literacy
Resource for medical providers about how to address conversations about death and dying with patients and families.
Grief: Overview for Clinicians
Resources for clinicians and patients regarding grief from the University of Wisconsin Department of Family Medicine and Community Health
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization: Resources
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization resource page on death and loss
National Palliative Care Research Center
Articles:
“Should We Practice What We Profess? Care near the End of Life,” Philip Pizzo and David Walker
Article from the New England Journal of Medicine that address the discrepancy between what physician’s want for themselves at the end of life and what they recommend or offer their own patients
“The Best Possible Day,” Atul Gawande
Atul Gawande discusses his research and findings about death and dying while writing his book, Being Mortal
