A Midwife Through the Dying Process


Book Description

In this sensitive and compassionate exploration of the physician's role in the dying process of terminally ill patients, Dr. Timothy Quill examines the partnership and the complex end-of-life issues that surround physician-assisted-death, demonstrating the tension inherent between the fight for life and the mandate to relieve suffering.




Midwife for Souls


Book Description

Oftentimes caregivers, friends, and family are unsure of what to say and what to do to comfort the sick and the dying. Midwife for Souls provides specific Catholic insight and highlights the power of prayer as a guide. This best-selling book has been revised to include a new section of inspiring stories and lessons learned in hospice ministry.




The Soul Midwives' Handbook


Book Description

Soul Midwives, a movement begun by Felicity Warner, has changed the face of modern holistic and spiritual palliative care in the UK and abroad.Soul Midwives are holistic and spiritual companions to the dying. They draw on traditional skills, now largely forgotten, applying them to our modern world to ease the passage of those who are dying. Their services are used within people's own homes, in hospices and in care homes.Anyone with an open and compassionate heart and a desire to help others can train to become a Soul Midwife. This book will guide you through the core principles and techniques of this practice.




The Art of Death Midwifery


Book Description

"Joellyn St. Pierre brings to The art of death midwifery an introduction and beginner's guide nearly two decades of work with the dying and those who support dying patients in homes, hospitals, and hospices. In these pages, caregivers will find compassionate and creative approaches designed to assist those who are helpmates. The author's techniques are designed to enhance the process of communing with the patient through multiple senses, thereby creating a level of comfort for the dying"--P. 4 of cover.




Caring for the Dying


Book Description

Caring for the Dying describes a whole new way to approach death and dying. It explores how the dying and their families can bring deep meaning and great comfort to the care given at the end of a life. Created by Henry Fersko-Weiss, the end-of-life doula model is adapted from the work of birth doulas and helps the dying to find meaning in their life, express that meaning in powerful and beautiful legacies, and plan for the final days. The approach calls for around-the-clock vigil care, so the dying person and their family have the emotional and spiritual support they need along with guidance on signs and symptoms of dying. It also covers the work of reprocessing a death with the family afterward and the early work of grieving. Emphasis is placed on the space around the dying person and encourages the use of touch, guided imagery, and ritual during the dying process. Throughout the book Fersko-Weiss tells amazing and encouraging stories of the people he has cared for, as well as stories that come from doulas he has trained and worked with over the years. What is unique about this book is the well-conceived and thorough approach it describes to working skillfully with the dying. The guidance provided can help a dying person, their family, and caregivers to transform the dying experience from one of fear and despair into one that is uplifting and even life affirming. You will see death in a new light and gain a different perspective on how to help the dying. It may even change the way you live your life right now.




Physician-Assisted Dying


Book Description

In this volume, a distinguished group of physicians, ethicists, lawyers, and activists come together to present the case for the legalization of physician-assisted dying, for terminally ill patients who voluntarily request it. To counter the arguments and assumptions of those opposed to legalization of assisted suicide, the contributors examine ethical arguments concerning self-determination and the relief of suffering; analyze empirical data from Oregon and the Netherlands; describe their personal experiences as physicians, family members, and patients; assess the legal and ethical responsibilities of the physician; and discuss the role of pain, depression, faith, and dignity in this decision. Together, the essays in this volume present strong arguments for the ethical acceptance and legal recognition of the practice of physician-assisted dying as a last resort -- not as an alternative to excellent palliative care but as an important possibility for patients who seek it.




In the Midst of Life


Book Description

The first major collection of Ambrose Bierce’s short stories, In the Midst of Life: Tales of Soldiers and Civilians went through multiple editions and titles, with Bierce adding, removing, and revising the stories each time. The version of the stories as collected here follows the final selection and revisions made by Bierce for his Collected Works, Volume 2, published in 1909, and is broken up into two sections, “Soldiers” and “Civilians.” Bierce fought for the Union in the American Civil War from the very first organized action at Philippi. He went on to fight in some of the deadliest battles of the war, at Shiloh and Chickamauga. He joined Sherman’s army on its march to Atlanta, and was grievously wounded in the head at Kennesaw Mountain. These locations serve as backdrops in his gritty and realist short stories in the “Soldiers” collection, most especially in the surreal story “Chickamauga.” While these stories are set in the war, Bierce covers a wide range of themes, from the fear of death in “Parker Adderson, Philosopher,” the requirements of duty for a soldier in “A Horseman in the Sky,” and what one might do for love in “Killed at Resaca.” Perhaps the most well-known story in “Soldiers” is “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.” Kurt Vonnegut called it “the greatest American short story,” saying “It is a flawless example of American genius, like ‘Sophisticated Lady’ by Duke Ellington or the Franklin stove.” Bierce, much like Edgar Allan Poe and H. P. Lovecraft, was an American pioneer in what he called his “tall tales”—psychological, supernatural, grotesque, and horror fiction. Many stories in “Civilians,” such as “The Man and the Snake,” “A Holy Terror,” and “The Suitable Surroundings,” foreshadow his later and darker works as studies in psychological horror. “The Eyes of the Panther” is a tragic, near-supernatural (though the reader is left guessing) tale of a woman of “feline beauty” and the man seeking her hand. Other stories found in the collection are satirical and ironic, like “The Famous Gilson Bequest” and “The Applicant.” Bierce’s writing earned him the title “Bitter Bierce” from his contemporaries, as one finds precious little hope and compassion in his stories, with death—often cruel—a recurring theme. A very rare exception can be found in “A Lady from Redhorse,” an epistolary romance. This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.




Healing the Dying


Book Description

Will help the sick, the dying and those who care for them.




A Safe Journey Home


Book Description

Have you ever sat with someone as they were dying and wished that you could make it a better experience? Helping others face death with dignity and positivity is an act of profound kindness that also helps give the caregiver a chance to come to terms with this critical moment in our life’s journey. Felicity Warner reveals her guide to the unique experience of death in A Safe Journey Home, based on years of experience in hospice care. This essential guide will tell you all you need to know to help a loved one or friend to die gently and with dignity once medicine has reached its limits. You can honour their experience and nurture it, by giving them all your attention, kindness and love. Accompanied by beautiful illustrations that will act as a comfort to all those experiencing death or bereavement, this book is a powerful guide to a subject that affects us all.




Compassionate Person-Centered Care for the Dying


Book Description

A milestone resource for palliative care nurses that facilitates evidence-based compassionate and humanistic care of the dying "A valuable contribution to the evolving field of palliative nursing care. It is authored by a model for this field, Bonnie Freeman, and brings to the bedside what her practice embodies--evidence-based clinically expert care...The CARES tool is a long-needed resource and we are all grateful to the author for moving her passion to paper. It will touch the lives and deaths of patients, families, and the nurses who care for them." --Betty Ferrell, PhD, RN, MA, FAAN, FCPN, CHPN Professor and Director, Division of Nursing Research and Education City of Hope National Medical Center From the Foreword This groundbreaking reference for palliative care nurses is the first to provide realistic and achievable evidence-based methods for incorporating compassionate and humanistic care of the dying into current standards of practice. It builds on the author's research-based CARES tool; a reference that synthesizes five key elements demonstrated to enable a peaceful death, as free from suffering as possible: comfort, airway management, management of restlessness and delirium, emotional and spiritual support, and selfcare for nurses. The book describes, step by step, how nurses can easily implement the basic tenets of the CARES tool into their end-of-life practice. It provides a clearly defined plan that can be individualized for each patient and tailored to specific family needs, and facilitates caring for the dying in the most respectful and humane way possible. The book identifies the most common symptom management needs in dying patients and describes, in detail, the five components of the CARES paradigm and how to implement them to enable a peaceful death and minimize suffering. It includes palliative care prompts founded on 29 evidence-based recommendations and the National Consensus Project for Palliative Care Clinical Practice Guidelines. The resource also addresses the importance of the nurse to act as a patient advocate, how to achieve compassionate communication with the patient and family, and barriers and challenges to compassionate care. Case studies emphasize the importance of compassionate nursing care of the dying and how it can be effectively achieved. Key Features: Provides nurses with a clear understanding of the most common needs of the dying and supplies practical applications to facilitate and improve care Clarifies the current and often complex literature on care of the dying Includes case studies illustrating the most common needs of dying patients and how these are addressed effectively by the CARES tool Based on extensive evidence as well as on the National Consensus Project for Palliative Care Clinical Practice Guidelines