It is my pleasure to host this guest post from caregiver and writer, Ruth Berzins. This blog post is part of a series on grief published on the Madiha Foundation website. The Madiha Foundation‘s mission is to improve people’s mental health and empower women. The foundation offers simple yet effective programs
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THE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM A Blog by Donna Thomson: A VERY HUMAN STORY OF COMPLICATED CARING
Yesterday I had the delicious pleasure of sitting in a small, country community centre hall with seven other writers. We were there for a workshop at the invitation of Brian Doyle, my neighbour who also happens to be a highly distinguished Canadian novelist. My favourite book of Brian Doyle’s is
Continue readingTHE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM A Blog by Donna Thomson: Why Using Hospice Doesn’t Mean You’re “Giving Up”
None of my own family members have ever been in hospice care, but our son Nick has been on palliative care for some time now. We support Nick’s decision not to have any more surgery or invasive procedures to correct the effects of his disabilities. Between 2006 and 2011, we
Continue readingTHE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM A Blog by Donna Thomson: Why Using Hospice Doesn’t Mean You’re “Giving Up”
None of my own family members have ever been in hospice care, but our son Nick has been on palliative care for some time now. We support Nick’s decision not to have any more surgery or invasive procedures to correct the effects of his disabilities. Between 2006 and 2011, we
Continue readingThe Cracked Crystal Ball II: The Hypocrisy of "Pro-Life" Laws
In the Byzantine land of Texas Law, it seems that an arcane piece of legislation passed in the 1980s is being used to usurp the wishes of a woman who died of a pulmonary embolism. The diagnosis was crushing and irrevocable. At 33, Marlise Munoz was brain dead after collapsing on
Continue readingTHE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM - A Blog by Donna Thomson: The Rasouli Case and Why It Matters – One Family’s Battle For the Right to Consent
Yesterday, newspapers in Canada announced an important Supreme Court ruling for caregivers and their families. At issue was whether or not physicians had the unilateral right to withdraw life support from a patient on the basis that to continue life support was a) futile and b) that the withdrawal of
Continue readingMusings on Canadian Politics: Quebec at forefront of right-to-die movement
The Quebec National Assembly introduced a bill on Wednesday that will allow health professionals to use medical procedures to end the lives of patients near death who are suffering and want to end their lives. The legislation “is intended for people at the end of their life to die with
Continue readingTHE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM - A Blog by Donna Thomson: Five Tips for Surviving Caregiving
A few weeks ago, I travelled to Vancouver to address a family association and also to give a talk about how we use Tyze Personal Networks to coordinate Nick’s care. I’ve written extensively on Tyze before, but for the uninitiated, Tyze is a softw…
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