An unexpected journey into aged & palliative care

albany wind farm

Albany wind farm

This post is a year overdue. If I were to have written this in April 2015, the title would have been “The tale of two deaths” where I would have reflected upon the peaceful, managed and expected passing of a 93-year-old aged care patient contrasted with the tragic accidental death of a 19-year-old patient whom I’d seen only a week earlier.

But what I’ve learnt is that tragic accidents are random, unexpected and do not happen often. More importantly I have been involved in the end-of life care of several patients since then, that have taught me a great deal about palliative care medicine, the value of open and frank conversations with family and some of the myths surrounding the management of death.

This is also a story of my maturity through being stretched and learning that the part of medicine that I ran away from the most has ended up becoming my greatest passion and future, aged and palliative care.

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Elsewhere in the palliverse – Weekend reads without Elissa

Dear Friends,

Another week has passed and there is much to tell, but before we get into let spare a quick (and envious) thought for Elissa who can’t be with us to post today because she is in the middle of a well earned holiday.

Now down to business.

This clip from the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) describes a novel analogy for our selves that works neatly with a description of palliative care.

The animation is part of a suite of resources that the CAPC has made available here. Continue reading