When Autumn Comes: Creating Compassionate Care for the Dying: A Hospice Volunteer's Stories of Dying, Healing, and Companionship - Softcover

Bennett, Mary Jo

Softcover

ISBN 10: 059531662X ISBN 13: 9780595316625

Publisher: iUniverse, 2004

Synopsis

When Autumn Comes will help you appreciate and respond to the important needs and delicate issues of our final passage through life. With wisdom and sensitivity, it gives practical keys for creating a holistic, comforting environment for those nearing the end of life so they can face death with peace and dignity.The author shares her intimate relationship with death in the loss of her lover and close friends and in her many years of experience at the bedside of the dying as a hospice volunteer. Her moving journey through grief, tears and companionship shows how we can find greater compassion and understanding in caring both for the dying and for ourselves in our time of loss."When Autumn Comes shows us that, with compassionate care, the end of life can be a time of personal growth and healing for the dying and their loved ones."Dannion Brinkley, chairman and founder of Compassion in Action and author Saved by the Light"Borrowing from her years of experience as a hospice volunteer, Mary Jo Bennett offers both practical advice and thoughtful reflection on the art of caring for the terminally ill. When Autumn Comes is invaluable to hospice volunteers and other caregivers, who are struggling with the nitty-gritty details of care and the deeper questions that often arise through such loving work."James Hallenbeck, M.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine and author of Palliative Care Perspectives

About this title

Synopsis

When a loved one dies, how do we respond? And if we have encountered death up close, can we in turn assist others who are facing end of life issues? When Autumn Comes explores death from the perspective of a hospice volunteer, recounting stories based on experiences with patients, friends and family members, as they each approach dying on their own terms. Ultimately we will all lose someone close to us. This insightful and tender book not only provides a foundation for those interested in pursuing hospice volunteer work, but for anyone seeking greater understanding and compassion in caring for the dying.

About the Author

Ms. Bennett received her hospice volunteer training in 1994 and is committed to promoting awareness and understanding about hospice and issues pertaining to death and dying. Raised in New York City, she graduated Cum Laude from Syracuse University and now resides in Montana with her husband and two young children.

Edition details

• Publisher: iUniverse
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 059531662X
• ISBN 13: 9780595316625
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 212