While I had anticipated the stay-at-home orders would slow down the pace of our lives, that has not been the case for the Compassion & Choices team. The fast pace of the COVID-19 pandemic, constant rush of news and information, and increased prominence of our mission has resulted in a need for us to move [...]
“I have heart disease, and I am scared. For years, doctor’s visits and medication have kept me alive. However, now I am afraid if I go to the doctor, I will catch coronavirus and die. If I don’t go, my heart disease could kill me.” I have had similar conversations with seriously ill Americans nationwide [...]
Viewpoint: COVID-19 crisis demonstrates urgent need for end-of-life planning by Kim Callinan Thousands of Americans have died from coronavirus, with countless heartbreaking stories. Many families have been separated from a loved one who dies alone in a hospital bed. Health systems are making unfathomable decisions about rationing the limited supply of ventilators. Families are [...]
For our Spanish speaking followers: OPINIÓN: Preparándonos para la muerte en la era del coronavirus
I will never forget watching my 4th grade teacher, Irene Herrin, a family friend whom I adored, die an agonizingly slow and painful death from cancer at age 65. Irene had no living family when she got sick. There was no one to advocate for her and to find out how and whether she wanted [...]
4.24.20 Via The New York Times: Sobering statistics for older patients sharpen the need to draw up advanced directives for treatment and share them with their families. Earlier this month, Cheryl Goldman, a retired high school teacher living on Long Island, called her son, Edo Banach, in Maryland. It seemed a routine chat until [...]
COVID-19 has given many Americans a new awareness of their own mortality and raised the relevancy of end-of-life planning. With that awareness is a new set of challenges: concern over whether a ventilator will be available if you need it; confusion over treatment options; and concerns about dying in complete isolation from your family — [...]
From Compassion & Choices: In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re adapting our programs to continue to connect with you through a webinar series. Throughout the series, we are inviting guests to talk about navigating your preferences for the end of life. Compassion & Choices’ Tools to Finish Strong lays the groundwork for our conversations. [...]
Terminal illnesses can’t be put on hold. As I look out the window and welcome the first signs of spring — trees flowering, warmer weather, birds singing — life almost feels normal. It’s nearly unfathomable that just a couple of weeks ago, life WAS normal. Today, our world is dramatically different. Uncertainty is the new normal, as [...]
Even for an organization that deals with health crises every day, the COVID-19 pandemic is sobering and calls for new tactics. In the early days of the pandemic, our seriously ill and terminally ill supporters began expressing deep-seated concerns: concerns that they were more vulnerable to contracting the coronavirus and dying prematurely, concerns that the [...]
