Should Hospice Prison Inmates Be Released Early? (Video 1:56)

Quality end-of-life care in prison continues to grow as more prisons establish hospice programs, particularly for an aging prison population. Inmate hospice volunteers play an important role. If a terminally ill patient is in prison, attentive caregiving can be especially beneficial when given by familiar faces of those who have also experienced the prison system.

Controversial discussions continue to surround the topic of early release options for older adult inmates who are infirm and ill. Referred to as “compassionate release” and “medical parole,” supporters feel that placing these inmates in private medical facilities would be more cost effective for the prison system, especially for prisoners serving life terms and no longer considered a danger to society. Others who support victims of heinous crimes are adamant that prisoners should serve their life terms in prison regardless of their age and severity of their illness. What do you think?

Note: Grace Before Dying by Lori Waselchuk is an award-winning photographic documentary that chronicles the prison-run hospice at Angola State Penitentiary in Louisiana. She photographed the picture of the two men above. Read more about her work here.

This video presents the pros and cons of early release of aging, infirm, and ill inmates who are housed at the California Medical Facility where a hospice unit currently provides end-of-life care. 


Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Grief Support for Co-Workers and Classmates (Video 1:05)

Comforting co-workers and classmates who are struggling with grief symptoms is uncomfortable for many people. While they may have good intentions, they often lack confidence regarding what to say or do that will help mourners adjust to a loss. At the workplace and at school, many staff members and classmates may feel that only experts should handle grief support. Worried that they might cause hurt feelings, they may remain distant from those mourning. Holding back their support, however, can negatively impact their colleagues who are suffering.

Although counselors and others trained in grief management play an important role, colleagues can also make beneficial contributions. Workshops, meetings, and classes at the workplace and at schools should include time for sharing strategies everyone can incorporate to alleviate grief as a community representing individuals of the organization. Implementation of these strategies can help create workplace and school cultures where everyone feels inspired to support one another in whatever ways they can during times of grief.

Sandi Sunter, director of community development for the Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, offers suggestions for coping with a co-worker’s death 
in this video titled “Hospice Care & Grief Counseling: Dealing With a Co-Worker's Death.”

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many online and offline booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble online stores.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Approaching Death: Dying Symptoms, Caregiver Support (Video 5:31)

The body knows when it’s time to slow down and die. Each body will die in its own way and in its own time when the process starts. I have been asked on several occasions to explain some of the circumstances that may be present when death is near. This excerpt from my book Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes addresses that:

“Among symptoms of impending death, there might be decreases in food intake, swallowing, communication; and increases in sleep, weakness and spiritual awareness. The latter might include speaking to or appearing to look at, or dreaming about persons who have already died. Patients may become incontinent, agitated, confused, withdrawn, and congested. Bright light in patients’ eyes should be avoided. Patients should be turned gently when necessary. Hospice care should provide every reasonable effort to control pain and stabilize patients to a plateau of comfort. The hospice nurse or doctor can explain any changes that cause concern during the dying process.

Some caregivers become upset when dying patients lose their appetites. Because they view food as nurturing, they want to keep giving patients more food than they need. It is important to keep in mind that dying patients with little or no appetite are not starving or in pain from hunger in the manner that is commonly understood. They are responding normally to the body’s breaking down as part of the dying process. Swallowing may be difficult for them and could lead to choking when food is forced into their mouths. They could also become nauseous and vomit from being forced to take in food they do not want. Dying patients may also want less to drink. The insides of their mouths can be moistened with droplets or a fine spray, and a lip cream can be used, especially if they are breathing through their mouths. It is not unusual for breathing of dying patients to fluctuate from quiet to noisy or to have an irregular rhythm."

As much as possible, caregivers should remain calm and give patients reassuring presence. This video titled “Palliative Curriculum - Part 6 - Last Hours of Living” presents a scenario about a daughter’s concerns during her mother’s final days.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Fears of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Older Adults: Healthcare Staff Training and Housing (Research, Video 5:11)

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) older adults living in nursing homes, long-term care, assisted living, and even those receiving home care from healthcare workers have increasingly been discriminated against and abused by staff and fellow residents. Damage to their emotional and physical health has been so devastating that some LGBT residents have resorted to suicide.

In a study at Yeshiva University in New York, elderly participants in community and long-term care settings reported the following fears:

1) Fear of being rejected or neglected by healthcare providers, particularly personal care aides

2) Fear of not being accepted or respected by other residents

3) Fear of having to go back into the closet and pretend their sexual orientation is different

Important solutions to this problem include a national drive to train long-term care providers in equitable and compassionate care. University of Iowa findings from a nationally representative mail-in survey of over a thousand nursing home and social service directors revealed that three-fourths of the sample had not received even one hour of homophobia training over the past five years. Directors with the most experience reported having the least training. More development and dissemination of homophobia training is critically needed along with policy changes that positively impact the quality of life of LGBT older adults.

A move for separate, but equal housing is another solution that has been implemented to counteract the inequities many LGBT seniors experience. The nonprofit, 104-unit Gay and Lesbian Elder Housing (GLEH) Triangle Square in Los Angeles, California is the first affordable housing facility for lesbian and gay seniors. “A Place To Live - The GLEH Triangle Square Story,” a film by Carolyn Coal and Cynthia Childs, chronicles the journey of seven seniors attempting to secure a home there before it opened a few years ago.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog