tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post3711974354300887132..comments2009-03-31T06:10:57.936-07:00Christian Sinclair, MDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14685043408496367587ctsinclair@gmail.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post-65603218691477759452009-03-31T06:10:00.000-07:002009-03-31T06:10:00.000-07:00I've always routinely read obituaries, even before I made the career change to hospice and palliative care medicine. While in the in-patient world of medicine, being a hospitalist and intensivist, it allowed be to find out what happened to some of my patients after they were discharged. Now, it allows me to follow-up on patients that were seen on the palliative care consult service and discharged to either home hospice, the in-patient hospice unit or with other services.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post-51138191353053316992009-03-30T18:07:00.000-07:002009-03-30T18:07:00.000-07:00I would like to know how many of you out there read the obits too. Maybe its like going to funerals of patients. Some go to them regularly, some have a strict rule of never going. Maybe some people find that after a long day of taking care of the sick and dying, they just can't read about it too. I can't fault either side.Amber Wollesen, MDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01363380047496375863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post-21612685494538196282009-03-30T17:02:00.000-07:002009-03-30T17:02:00.000-07:00I think it might be interesting to know how many of us who work in hospice DO read the obituaries....it is the first page I turn to in the paper...<BR/>So often the obit provides us a glimpse of the person when their life was vital and engaged... <BR/>Unfortunately, we don't appreciate those things in the short time we know them...LLWaldschmidtnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post-36020629197591363692009-03-23T20:26:00.000-07:002009-03-23T20:26:00.000-07:00Gail Rae, I must admit that I've never tried to write my own obituary. It might be a good exercise. Maybe I should make my residents and students do that. I know one of my English teachers used to have students write their own epitaphs. Thanks for your comment.Amber Wollesen, MDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01363380047496375863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5231979855831826598.post-83995815350525808292009-03-23T20:01:00.000-07:002009-03-23T20:01:00.000-07:00You've tapped into my not-so-secret obsession, here! Thank you for the information. I'm surprised I didn't know about this society.<BR/>Sidebar that I hope people find interesting: A few years ago, through a friend, of heard of a technique used in psychological therapy in which the client periodically writes her or his obituary, including date, time and manner of death, a life review and anything else the client wishes the world (and themselves) to know at "the end" of their life.<BR/>I tried to get my mother, who was also fascinated with obituaries, (I may have absconded this interest from her) to do this, both as an attempt to spur some internal psychological review (for which she NEVER had a passion nor an understanding; I don't think she ever felt a need for it) and to get an idea of what she wanted me to say about her when the time came to announce her death to the world. I could never coax her to do this. Her attitude was that obituaries, while interesting, are best left to survivors.<BR/>Perusing through the obits posted at SPOW, I think she may have been right.Gail Raehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10429291136763615708noreply@blogger.com