The Heart of Hospice Podcast

“If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.”  That old saying can be applied to hospice care. The Heart of Hospice is out to change the way healthcare professionals talk about end of life care.  The outdated urban myths about hospice are only perpetuated by the thoughtless things we say. This week’s Heartbeat episode has us talking about the best ways to talk to families and patien...

To kick off National Hospice and Palliative Care Month, we’re talking with Judi Lund Person, BA, MBH, CHC, NHPCO’s Vice President, Regulatory and Compliance.  Judi is the voice of NHPCO and hospice providers across the U.S. in discussions with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. According to the NHPCO website , Judi “develops updated tools for hospice providers, including guides to hosp...

November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month and we’re celebrating the care that hospice and palliative care programs all over the country provide.  This year’s theme is “My Hospice: A Program that Works. A Benefit that Matters.” Helen and Jerry take some time on this week’s Heartbeat to share some gratitude for the work that hospice teams do.   Taking a team approach to the care of our...

Don’t let the name fool you. The Death Deck game is really fun!  Irreverent, thought provoking, and funny - the discussion prompts and questions of the Death Deck card game help make those awkward conversations about death and dying so much easier.  The hosts of The Heart of Hospice talk about using the game with a partner or with a group, employing humor and imagination to discuss a topic that ma...

The Heart of Hospice was honored to sit down and chat with David Kessler about his work in grief and healing, his personal grief experiences, and his new book Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief.  According to his website grief.com , David “is one of the world’s foremost experts on healing and loss. His experience with people on the edge of life and death has taught him the secrets to living...

How you start and end your day makes a difference in how you feel.  Healthy Self Care routines can give you a boost when you get going and help you to disconnect to have a good night.  Jerry shares some of his healthiest habits that form his morning routines - listening to podcasts and drinking a big glass of water.  Helen has her own routines that help her to disconnect at night and get to bed on...

Jerry and Helen are excited to share their interview with Michael Hebb, the author of "Let’s Have Dinner and Talk About Death”, and the founder of Death Over Dinner.  According to the Death Over Dinner website , Michael “ has been staging convivial gatherings and redefining hospitality/tablemaking since 1997; co-founding the City Repair project with Mark Lakeman; and co-founding family supper, rip...

Working from the road carries its own kind of fatigue that requires some well-designed Self Care.  When you’re moving from patient to patient, or from office to office, you need activities for mind, body, and spirit.  Look for Self Care ideas that can help you debrief and decompress - listen to a podcast, take some deep breaths, or put on a playlist of your favorite songs.  If you need a good cry,...

Having an accountability partner can really boost your Self Care.  Whether it’s for mind, body, or spirit Self Care, your accountability partner is a source of encouragement and inspiration.  But when your Self Care gets stale and you feel like you need a change, maybe it’s time for a challenge. How about challenging each other to try a new activity, to up the pace of your workouts, or to try a ne...

A new documentary from HBO is a way to gain insight into how Americans handle deaths.  According to the HBO website, the film was “Directed and produced by Perri Peltz and Matthew O’Neill (HBO’s Axios), "Alternate Endings: Six New Ways to Die in America" offers a fascinating look at the varied ways Americans are choosing to both find meaning and celebrate life as it comes to an end. As the baby bo...

There are currently 9 states in the U.S. that have Death with Dignity laws in place.  Designed to allow self determination in death and prevent suffering, these laws can be controversial.  In this week’s Heartbeat from The Heart of Hospice, Helen and Jerry discuss the purpose of these laws and where to find out about the laws in your state.  It’s important that end of life professionals are aware...

Hospice billing can be a complicated process to tackle, and just when you figure it out, things change. CMS recently released the Final Rules for Fiscal Year 2020. It features some rebasing of payment for the various hospice levels of care.  The reimbursement for Routine Home Care is going down, while the payments for General Inpatient Care and Continuous Care will have a slight increase.  If you’...

Hospice administrators and managers are faced with the unique job of providing self care for hospice teams.  Multiple or difficult deaths, personal losses, and the daily wear and tear of a hospice workday creates a need for self care of the team.  Jerry and Helen discuss ways that team leaders can support and sustain healthy interdisciplinary teams that continue to provide excellent care in the lo...

Jonathan Prescott has made it his life’s work to teach patients, caregivers, clinicians, and anyone who seeks to learn about contemplative practices.  A Board Certified Chaplain, Clinical Chaplain, Pastoral Counselor, and an ordained student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, Jon’s work supports those who are seriously ill and nearing end of life. In his interview with Jerry and Helen, Jon shares some...

Part of practicing healthy self care is being self aware. Jerry and Helen do a self care check-in, sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly of their self care habits.  Even the strongest self care habits can get off track. Keeping your mind, body, and spirit in balance can be challenging. Maybe it’s time to take a good look at the current status of your self care regimen. Do a Self Care Check-In al...

We’re celebrating the start of Year 4 of The Heart of Hospice podcast!  All our wonderful guests, countless bloopers, a few tears with tons of laughter, and amazing connections with end of life professionals - we’re so grateful for all of it.  You can celebrate this milestone with us by sharing the podcast and website with someone who can benefit from information about end of life care. Thank you...

Fred Fuller will tell you that he gets more than he gives in his work with terminally ill patients.  Fred is one of a talented group of musicians who work with the non-profit organization Swan Songs to provide concerts for the dying in the Texas hill country.  Fred shares his story with Jerry and Helen, as well as some of his beautiful music. Known as the “Singing Cowboy”, Fred has been present fo...

Hospice professionals are always looking for better ways to standardize documentation.  It’s vital that each discipline have reliable resources to support and improve their documentation. The Spiritual Care Association , an affiliate of the Healthcare Chaplaincy Network , has created a chaplaincy taxonomy that’s available as a free download from their website.  It’s a great tool for spiritual care...

Music has a special place in the hearts of patients with a terminal illness.  The musicians at Swan Songs create unforgettable memories for those patients and their families by offering private concerts featuring the patients’ favorite music genres.  Founder Christine Albert shares the journey that brought her to start Swan Songs in central Texas. This non-profit organization is powered by profess...

Music has special meaning in times when we’re struggling or grieving. In the Austin, Texas area an organization called Swan Songs provides music for people who are living with a life-limiting illness.  The professional musicians who work with Swan Songs gather with the patient and family to play a concert of the patient’s favorite type of music. One of the artists will even write a song especially...

When someone you love dies, it can be hard to make decisions. Funeral, organ donation, cremation with a memorial service?  It’s a very personal choice and can be confusing. In today’s Heartbeat we’re discussing the option of whole body donation. Willing a body to a medical school or body donation service can be a way to assist with research into certain diseases or conditions.  Donation can also b...

Jethro Heiko and Nick Jehlen are the co-founders of Common Practice and the creators of the “Hello” game, a game designed to facilitate meaningful conversations that “inspire, connect, and heal.”  In today’s episode, Jethro and Nick share how the “Hello” game was designed and created, and the many ways it’s transformed families, teams, workgroups, even entire organizations and communities.  These...

Ellen Goodman is a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist, an award-winning journalist, an author of 7 books, and the co-founder of The Conversation Project. She recently shared with The Heart of Hospice hosts her most personal story of being her mother’s caregiver, and how it inspired her to create The Conversation Project. Ellen shared her story of being her mother’s caregiver and decision maker, and...

We continue our series on grief with our friend LPC Chuck Olliff, discussing how the unexpected responsibilities after a death can surprise us and amplify our grief. Jerry and Helen ask how to manage the emotions that occur with grief milestones like receiving a death certificate or ashes of a loved one. How do we react to that wave of grief that knocks us down? Chuck offers some options to help u...

Our guest Tony Luciani was an artist and painter before he became a caregiver for his mother after her diagnosis with dementia. Using creative and unorthodox methods, Tony found ways to engage his mamma in life. They shared the new experience of learning photography together, and Mamma found ways of expressing herself in captivating images. Tony shares the story of his journey in caregiving with u...