Press Release - March 19, 2010
Hospice Foundation of America's 17th annual National Teleconference, Cancer and End-of-Life Care, to air March 24
March 19, 2010--For Immediate Release
Contact: Lisa Veglahn, 800-854-3402
lveglahn@hospicefoundation.org
On March 24, Hospice Foundation of America (HFA) presents its 17th annual National Bereavement Teleconference. Cancer and End-of-Life Care will be broadcast live via satellite and webcast, 1:00pm—3:30pm EDT, to communities across the US and Canada. HFA’s teleconference is the leading distance education event in the field of hospice care and bereavement, reaching an annual audience of over 125,000 healthcare professionals and consumers.
Since its inception, hospice has provided highly valued and needed care for many patients and families facing terminal cancer. Malignant cancer remains the primary reason for hospice admission, accounting for 41.3 percent of all U.S. hospice patients in 2007. But as death rates from cancer decline, as new treatments emerge, and as the language around the imperative to “win the battle” over cancer becomes louder, how is the relationship between cancer and hospice changing?
The 2010 teleconference, focusing on Cancer and End-of-Life Care, will address care options as well as loss and grief reactions for patients, families and professional caregivers. The teleconference will also address communications dilemmas between health care teams and patients and families, psychosocial aspects of cancer, pain management, and ethical issues related to the disease. The program will include discussions of: The Transition to Palliative Care; Care of Dying Persons dealing with Cancer; Professional, Volunteer and Caregiver Needs; and the Aftermath of Cancer Death. The program will be moderated by Frank Sesno, Director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University, and will feature this expert panel:
- Yvette Colon, PhD, MSW, Director of Education and Support, American Pain Foundation;
- Malene Davis, CHPN, MBA, President and CEO, Capital Hospice;
- Kenneth J. Doka, PhD, College of New Rochelle and Senior Consultant, HFA;
- Richard Payne, MD, Director, Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life;
- Sherry Schachter, PhD, FT, Director of Bereavement Services Calvary Hospital/Hospice;
- Brad Stuart, MD, Senior Medical Director, Sutter VNA & Hospice
The program will be hosted in local communities by hospices, hospitals, universities and other community organizations. The program is also broadcast on professional education networks, such as the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Adventist Communications Network (ACN.) To find a local host site, viewers can go to HFA’s website at: http://www.hospicefoundation.org/teleconference/findasite.asp. Continuing Education Credits (CEs) are available for a wide range of professionals.
In conjunction with the broadcast, HFA publishes a companion book written by the panel and other experts; the Table of Contents can be viewed here. Registration as a host site for the program is available up until 1:15p on March 24. For more information, contact Lisa Veglahn at lveglahn@hospicefoundation.org
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