FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com march 6, 2014 • coping with death • The Queens Courier 57 On Their Own Terms Life is a cycle: birth, growth, maturation and finally the part few look forward to, death. But death is indeed a natural part of living. No one gets out of here alive. Most Americans have strong preferences about how they would like to live out their nal days and the types of care and treatment that they want to have and the types they would prefer to avoid. Yet all too often, we prefer not to talk about these preferences even though they are very important to us.The American Hospice movement began over 40 years ago with pioneers like Zelda Foster Elizabeth Kübler-Ross, who published her groundbreaking work “On Death and Dying” on May 1, 1969. Locally, Zelda Foster worked as a clinical social worker at the Veteran’s Administration Hospital in Brooklyn in the late 60’s. She was struck that patients were often treated like children, and not even told the truth about their prognosis or allowed to discuss their preferences for their care and treatment. Zelda called this “the conspiracy of silence.” Zelda worked with other Hospice pioneers like London’s Cecily Saunders and Connecticut’s Florence Wald to get the American Hospice movement started. Zelda found that most of her dying patient did understand what was happening to them, but were never able to discuss their preferences for care with loved ones or even their health care providers. Respect for individual choice in how he or she lives during their nal days and their preferences for treatments and location of care became one of the foundations of the nascent Hospice movement. Recent studies show that over 75% of Americans polled say they would rather die in the comfortable, familiar surroundings of their own home, yet nearly 75% of Americans actually die in the hospital or nursing home setting. It is a key concern of Hospice to ensure that patients’ wishes are respected. Indeed, for 2012, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization reported 66% of hospice patients died in their own place of residence. What is troubling to many who work in hospice is that far too many people think of ‘Hospice’ as a place, not realizing that the comprehensive care and compassion that Hospice brings is available to them in their own homes. Another striking characteristic is that Hospice offer care not only to the patient facing a life-limiting illness, but Hospices provide support and comfort the patient’s family as well. Surprising to many is the fact that grief counseling and bereavement support are offered to individuals in the community who have lost a loved one regardless of whether or not that one who died had been cared for by Hospice. When many people learn about the care and comfort offered by Hospice, they often ask how they can help. Every Hospice Program certified by Medicare has a strong and vibrant volunteer program. Individuals in the community contribute their time and talent to patients and their loved ones at the most critical time. Volunteers perform a variety of services such as visiting with patients, reading to them or sharing stories from the patients’ past. Some bring favorite treats such as ice cream or other comfort foods, and or a simple task like applying a fresh coat of nail polish. Whatever the interaction, the nearly universal response from volunteers seems to be, “I feel like I received so much more by volunteering than I ever gave.” Hospice of New York is one of the Hospices serving the New York Metropolitan Area since 1997. Since that time they have cared for over 19,000 patients and their loved ones. Hospice of New York provides care throughout Nassau, Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Manhattan. If you would like to learn more about the services of Hospice of New York, call 718-472-1999 or go on line at www.hospiceny.com. To learn more about becoming a volunteer, contact one of their volunteer coordinators: By John Diaz-Chermack -- March 3, 2014 Angela Purpura (Nassau & Queens) angela.purpura@hospiceny.com Sandra Nielsen (Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan) sandra.nielsen@hospiceny.com
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