HFA's E-Newsletter - June 2012

Volume 12, Issue 6

In this issue:

Dear E-News Subscriber
Focus on: Artificial Nutrition and Hydration
HFA Lunch 'n Learn - Caregiver Burnout
What's New @ HFA's Hospice and Caregiving Blog

Dear E-News Subscriber:

Registration has now opened for our next New Perspectives program, focusing on Artificial Nutrition and Hydration at the End of Life. We've got some exciting updates that we want to share.

We've spent the past few months talking directly with many of you who utilize our programs in your communities. The conversations were insightful and honest, and we learned a great deal. Planning for this fall program has developed based directly on many of these phone calls. After our spring program on Ethics at the End of Life, the topic of Artificial Nutrition and Hydration continually came up as one area where professionals feel challenged to be kept up-to-date on the latest thinking and information. Not only is this knowledge important, but it also impacts how professionals then communicate with families about making these difficult decisions.

We are especially pleased to be joined by experts whose work bridges this critical gap between research and practice, including: Terry Altilio, LCSW, ACSW, social work coordinator in the Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care at Beth Israel Medical Center; Kenneth J. Doka, PhD, MDiv, is a Professor of Gerontology at the Graduate School of The College of New Rochelle and Senior Consultant to the Hospice Foundation of America; Rabbi Gary S. Fink, DMin, MAHL, Director of Spiritual Care at Montgomery Hospice; Thomas E. Finucane, MD, Professor of Medicine at the John Hopkins University (JHU) School of Medicine, the JHU Bioethics Institute, and part of JHU'S Core Faculty of the Biology of Healthy Aging Program; JoAnne Reifsynder, PhD, APRN, Chief Nursing Officer for Genesis HealthCare, LLC, where she is leading an interdisciplinary initiative to improve palliative and end of life care capabilities across 230 skilled nursing and long-term care facilities; and Joan M. Teno, MD, MS, is Professor of Health Services Policy and Practice and Associate Director of the Center for Gerontology and Health Care Research. The program will be moderated again by Frank Sesno, Director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University. The program will also include interviews with families and patients, ensuring that the personal side of this medical treatment issue is fully explored and understood.

We've also making some adjustments to the way we deliver the program, in order to be responsive to the realities of your daily work. The two-hour program will be available on DVD starting October 3 and will not require a local panel discussion. We've also developed an exciting set of registration packages that include many useful components of the program in a single, affordable purchase price.

We hope you join us for this important New Perspectives discussion. Early-bird registration is available just through June 1, offering you the best opportunity to participate in this vital discussion at the best cost. If you participated in HFA's recent End-of-Life Ethics program and want more in-depth information about this important topic, this fall program is a perfect companion to that learning experience.

Amy Tucci, President and CEO

Focus on: Artificial Nutrition and Hydration

Artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH) can be a contentious issue in hospice, palliative care, and long-term care and has been identified as one of the most common ethical dilemmas to arise in end-of-life care. In a recent cover article in Time entitled "How to Die," author Joe Klein writes about his very personal journey when his parents were dying. While he states that the professionals he worked with "helped me through some of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make," he also specifically notes that, "...it is clear to me, after this awful winter, that there are better ways to handle the end game. I now believe, for example, that I made a mistake when I agreed to Mom's feeding tube." (June 11, 2012, p. 20) Although he had to make a wide range of complex decisions for both of his parents, this decision involving artificial nutrition was one he singled out.

Our New Perspectives experts will discuss the complexities of ANH, its benefits and its burdens. In addition, they will address, and take questions from, program participants about the need for good communication with families, patients, and staff who may not always grasp the clinical, ethical, legal, cultural and spiritual considerations of this medical treatment.

Order the Continuing Education Combo Package and SAVE!

Purchase the combo package and receive access to the program plus CE certificates for 20 of your attendees to the board of their choice* - all for only $195! Hurry, this deal is only available through the end of June.
*Certificates available through HFA's list of Board Approvals

New! Discounted CE Packages Available to Sites

Give the gift of education to your staff, volunteers and community and choose from our discounted CE Packages. See our registration site for further details.

HFA Lunch 'n Learn - Caregiver Burnout

This Wednesday, June 13, from 1pm-2pmET, HFA will present a live, online webinar focusing on Caregiver Burnout/Compassion Fatigue: How it Affects Professionals-and How to Beat It. This webinar will examine what defines caregiver burnout and compassion fatigue, how they are similar and how they differ, and explore innovative ways to appropriately identify, prevent and cope with the effect these issues have on healthcare professionals. The live webinar features Robin Fiorelli, MSW, LCSW, and Mary Vachon, PhD, RN. During the program, the panelists will offer a historical perspective on the topic as well as share the most current research. Panelists will also discuss the importance of self-awareness and self-care, and offer some tangible steps that organizations can take to support their staff. The webinar will conclude with an important examination of how to turn Compassion Fatigue into Compassion Satisfaction.

Webinar participants will have the opportunity to ask the panel questions during the live program. Registration also includes access to the program online for one year after the original air date. Registration is $85 for an organization or $35 for individuals; a wide range of continuing education credits (CEs) are available for an additional $10 per person. Register today.

What’s New @ HFA’s Hospice and Caregiving Blog

HFA’s Hospice and Caregiving Blog gathers and disseminates information useful to professionals and consumers from a single destination. Our goals are to inform, offer support, and generate online comments about important end-of life issues. Read some of the blog’s most recent postings:

Subscribe to the Hospice and Caregiving blog feed and follow us on Twitter.

This newsletter is sent to over 8,000 subscribers every month to keep you informed of what is happening in the fields of hospice, grief and bereavement, and caregiving, as well as what's new at HFA. Privacy Statement: In no case will we share e-mail addresses. See the full text of HFA's Privacy Policy.

This newsletter is published by Hospice Foundation of America
Amy Tucci, President and CEO
http://www.hospicefoundation.org
© Hospice Foundation of America 2012

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