First hospice for Utah's homeless dedicated by community, religious leaders

From Utah-

Members of the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable, the Utah Legislature and others gathered Monday to participate in the blessing of Utah's first volunteer homeless hospice as a sanctuary and refuge.

"It is truly exciting to see the INN Between become a reality," chairwoman and co-founder Deborah Thrope told an overflowing crowd. "It was exceedingly challenging and frustrating to find resources for the homeless."

The INN Between is the first volunteer hospice house of its kind in Utah and will provide services to people regardless of insurance or ability to pay. The hospice is located in the building that formerly housed the Guadalupe School, 340 S. Goshen St. (1040 West).

More here-

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=34605751

Our unrealistic views of death, through a doctor’s eyes

From The Washington Post -

I know where this phone call is going. I’m on the hospital wards, and a physician in the emergency room downstairs is talking to me about an elderly patient who needs to be admitted to the hospital. The patient is new to me, but the story is familiar: He has several chronic conditions — heart failure, weak kidneys, anemia, Parkinson’s and mild dementia — all tentatively held in check by a fistful of medications. He has been falling more frequently, and his appetite has fallen off, too. Now a stroke threatens to topple this house of cards.

The ER physician and I talk briefly about what can be done. The stroke has driven the patient’s blood pressure through the roof, aggravating his heart failure, which in turn is threatening his fragile kidneys. The stroke is bad enough that, given his disabilities related to his Parkinson’s, he will probably never walk again. In elderly patients with a web of medical conditions, the potential complications of any therapy are often large and the benefits small. It’s a medical checkmate; all moves end in abdication.

More here-

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/our-unrealistic-views-of-death-through-a-doctors-eyes/2012/01/31/gIQAeaHpJR_story.html