End of Life Radio

In the preceding report, we described how many African-Americans lack access to basic comfort care at the end of life—hospice and palliative services that can ease pain and suffering during the dying process. The obstacles are even greater for Asians, Latinos, and other ethnic minorities. Language barriers and cultural traditions can inhibit awareness of end-of-life options, and are often compounded by poverty and lack of education. As JoAnn Mar reports, the barriers faced by immigrants of color can have devastating consequences.

The end of life is not easy for most Americans nearing death. The good news is that up to ninety percent of pain can be controlled. But the bad news is that over half of all Americans experience unwanted pain and suffering during their final days. And the numbers are even greater for people of color. In the first of a two-part series, JoAnn Mar looks at the reasons for these disparities among African Americans.

An hour-long in-depth documentary on the pain and suffering many dying people experience at the end of life. Palliative care and hospice can address most pain symptoms , but most Americans are unaware of these options and many nearing death experience unwanted pain and suffering in their final days. This program explains the benefits of palliative care and the importance of making end-of-life preparations in advance of the crisis.

Music at the bedside is an ancient tradition that dates back hundreds of years to the Middle Ages. Eleventh century Benedictine monks used music as part of their deathbed vigils to bring comfort and healing to those who were dying. Those practices fell out of favor, with the coming of the Reformation and the Industrial Age. Today, music at the end of life is making a comeback. JoAnn Mar has this report.

Death is an uncomfortable subject for many people. The way we die is probably the most important conversation Americans are not having. But during the last five years, a movement has grown to break the silence. Thousands of people around the world are now holding group conversations about death. JoAnn Mar has this report on the growth of death cafes and death over dinner.

On June 9, 2016, physician aid-in-dying became legal in California. The new “End Of Life Option Act” allows terminally ill people to hasten their deaths. Opinion polls have shown strong support for assisted-dying over the last thirty years. But Catholic Church leaders and medical groups have beaten back many attempts to legalize aid-in-dying. They succeeded in defeating a 1992 ballot initiative and stalling bills pending in the State Legislature. What finally broke the logjam was a video that went viral. JoAnn Mar has this report.

Most Americans are unprepared for the worst to happen—an accident or an unexpected illness that leaves them brain dead, but still alive. That's what happened to Terry Schiavo, a young woman who became comatose after suffering a heart attack in 1990. Schiavo was kept alive by a feeding tube for fifteen years After a highly publicized legal battle, the feeding tube was finally removed and Schiavo died seventeen days later. This protracted battle might have been avoided, if Terry Schiavo had completed a document known as an advance directive. JoAnn Mar explains what an advance directive is and pays a visit to the Wisconsin town of La Crosse, ground zero for the patient autonomy movement.

Modern medicine has cured diseases and brought great advances that were unimaginable a hundred years ago. The average life span has nearly doubled during the last century. While people are living longer, they're now facing health challenges that hadn't existed before—severe chronic illness, dementia, and Alzheimer's. For many people nearing the end of their lives, pain relief is often not available. JoAnn Mar reports on palliative care—addressing pain and suffering near the end of life.

"Death" is a subject that doesn't come up in many conversations. Most of us instinctively turn away from such morbid thoughts. All of us will die some day. Yet, thinking about death, planning for the end of life is just too difficult. But what if the unthinkable were to happen? What if a sudden illness or crisis happens that leaves you incapable of making your own decisions? For the first time ever, Medicare is now encouraging physicians to have these conversations with their patients, before the crisis happens. JoAnn Mar has this report on Advance Care Planning—conversations for the end of life.