THE SOUL OF BIOETHICS (Apr. 14, 2003) Edited by H.R. Moody - The Meaning of Loss - Ethical Dilemmas Workshop - Advance Care Planning - Travel for Suicide? - Bioethics Council Debates Aging - Books of Interest - Empathy: Response to Suffering - Coming Events ====================================================== THE MEANING OF LOSS "Why are so many people fascinated by Alzheimer's disease? Because it is not only a disease, but also a prism through which we can view life in ways not normally available to us. Through the Alzheimer's prism, we can experience life's constituent parts and understand better its resonances and quirks. And as the disease relentlessly progresses toward the final dimming of the sufferer, it forces us to experience death in a way it is rarely otherwise experienced. What is usually a quick flicker we see in super slow motion, over years. It is more painful than many people can even imagine, but it is also perhaps the most poignant of all reminders of why and how human life is so extraordinary. It is our best lens on the meaning of loss." (From David Shenk, THE FORGETTING: Alzheimer's: Portrait of an Epidemic, Doubleday, 2001, pp. 225-226) To read the first chapter of this book, visit The Forgetting: An Online Resource for the Alzheimer's Community at: http://www.randomhouse.com/features/forgetting/ ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- ETHICAL DILEMMAS WORKSHOP For a workshop on "Ethical Dilemmas in Work with Older People" visit: http://www.hrmoody.com/sw.html#6 ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- ADVANCE CARE PLANNING The current issue of "Innovations in End-of-Life Care" published by the Last Acts group contains important articles on advance directives and advance care planning. Read them at: http://www2.edc.org/lastacts/editorial.asp and also at: http://www2.edc.org/lastacts/promprac.asp See the list of related publications on advance care planning at: http://www2.edc.org/lastacts/readmore.asp For a list of websites on advance care planning, visit: http://www2.edc.org/lastacts/resources.asp ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- TRAVEL FOR SUICIDE??? The travel industry quickly develops new products for specialized niches for travelers. Will assisted suicide soon be next on the list? News reports indicate that travelers are now finding Switzerland a congenial destination for those who choose to end their lives. (The Netherlands and Belgium are also overseas jurisdictions where assisted suicide is legal.) For more on the options, see Derek Humphry's overview of "Assisted Suicide Laws around the World" at: http://www.assistedsuicide.org/suicide_laws.html On the legal situation in Switzerland, see: http://www.euthanasiaandthelaw.info/reports/september7/assessment%20hotz.doc For "Recent Developments in Physician-Assisted Suicide," see: http://www.willamette.edu/wucl/pas/pasupdateoctober2002.html ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- BIOETHICS COUNCIL DEBATES AGING While the eyes of the nation have been focused on events in Iraq, others in Washington, DC have been considering ethical issues in aging. The President's Council on Bioethics, chaired by ethicist Leon Kass, has been discussing the implications of aging and life- extension technology. A staff working paper "Age-Retardation: Scientific Possibilities and Moral Challenges," was discussed by the Council at its March, 2003 meeting. Read the staff paper at: http://www.bioethics.gov/background/age_retardation.html For an analysis of the debate over life extension, see the article in THE SCIENTIST at: http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20030307/05/ ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- BOOKS OF INTEREST The ElderCare Bookstore has following recommendations of interest: HANDBOOK FOR MORTALS: Guidance for People Facing Serious Illness by Joanne Lynn, M.D. HARD CHOICES FOR LOVING PEOPLE: CPR, Artificial Feeding, Comfort Measures Only and the Patient with a Life-Threatening Illness by Hank Dunn THE PERSON WITH ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: Pathways to Understanding the Experience by Phyllis Braudy Harris SPEAKING OUR MINDS: Personal Reflections From Individuals With Alzheimer's by Lisa Snyder For details, visit: http://www.ec-online.net/Connections/bookstore.htm ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- EMPATHY: RESPONSE TO SUFFERING "Medical practice involves more than mending physical bodies; it involves healing emotional states, but the challenge to discern where emotional healing is needed is a formidable one, even in ordinary medical encounters. Emotional receptivity is needed if physicians are to acknowledge the pain and suffering that patients do not, and sometimes cannot, put into words. This is because suffering is, by definition, difficult to bear, and thus is denied, resisted, hidden, or otherwise kept out of awareness." Jodi Helpern, FROM DETACHED CONCERN TO EMPATHY: Humanizing Medical Practice, Oxford Univ. Press, 2001, p. 145. ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- COMING EVENTS PHYSICIANS ON END OF LIFE CARE (EPEC). Training Conference. (Chicago, IL, Apr. 25-27, 2003). Includes four plenary and 12 interactive small-group sessions on the content and teaching techniques of palliative care. For information, visit: http://www.epec.net CAREGIVER TRAINING: "Caregiving at Life's End: The Train-the-Trainer Program" (Apr. 28 - May 2, 2003, Largo, FL). The Hospice Institute of the Florida Suncoast, 300 East Bay Drive, Largo, Florida. Free seminars based on a National Needs Assessment of caregivers providing end of life care. Registration is being accepted for the April, June, July, and August sessions. Contact: Andrea Goettel (727) 773-2569 or (727) 586-4432; or email at: andreagoettel@thehospice.org Visit the web site: http://www.thehospice.org/inst.htm END OF LIFE CONCERNS AND CARE: Web Seminar. The American Society on Aging (ASA) and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) offer a four session web seminar covering: (1) The Continuum of approaches to end of life care (2) Decision making and communication (3 Pain and symptom management (4)Coping with the losses of aging. Faculty include Barry Baines, Donald Schumacher, G. Jay Westbrook, and Phyllis Silverman. From May 6 through mid-June (continuously available on the web). For details, visit: http://www.asaging.org/webseminars/websem.cfm?EventID=5399 PALLIATIVE CARE. "Vital Partnerships in Palliative Care: Toward an Integrated Model." (Skokie, IL, May 9, 2003). North Shore Center for Performing Arts. For details contact Palliative CareCenter & Hospice of the North Shore at (847) 467-7423 or visit: http://www.carecenter.org SUFFERING. "Suffering, Palliation & End of Life: Ethical, Spiritual and Cultural Challenges." (May 9, 2003, East Lansing, MI). Sponsored by the Medical Ethics Resource Network of Michigan at the Kellogg Center, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan. For information, contact: Jan Holmes at mern@msu.edu or visit: http://www.mern.org "SPIRITUALITY AND CRISIS" (May 12-14, 2003, Towson, MD). Institute for Spirituality and Medicine, sponsored by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. For clergy, physicians, psychologists, nurses and social workers and other health professionals. Contact: contact Jeanne Ryan at 410-614-6163; or email at: cmenet@jhmi.edu RESEARCH ETHICS: "How Bioethics Could Lead to Better Human Research" (May 26-30, 2003, Madrid, Spain). Arthur Caplan and Prof. Diego Garcia, Co-Directors. Covers Ethics of Biomedical Human from American and European Perspectives, including topics such as Gene Therapy & Enhancement; Cloning & Stem Cells Research; and Clinical innovation or human experimentation. For more information, call the Penn Center for Bioethics at (215) 898-7136 or visit: http://www.med.upenn.edu/bioethic/events/humanresearch/ ----------------------<<< >>>------------------------- ETHICS IN AN AGING SOCIETY (Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1992, paperback, 1995). The first single author monograph on bioethics and aging, including coverage of issues of rational suicide, Alzheimer's Disease, autonomy in long term care and justice between generations. Application of the Critical Theory of Jurgen Habermas to applied ethics. For details on the book, visit: http://www.press.jhu.edu/press/books/titles/s96/s96moet.htm xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx This electronic newsletter, edited by Harry (Rick) Moody, is published by the Institute for Human Values in Aging with the support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. To submit items of interest or request subscription changes, contact hrmoody@yahoo.com For additional information, visit http://www.hrmoody.com (c) Copyright 2003; all rights reserved. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx