New Orleans Jazz Funeral: Homegoing Celebration With Second Line Dancing (7:39)

In New Orleans, my hometown, a jazz funeral is considered a homegoing celebration because the deceased is going home, crossing over to the other side. Emotions often run high as mourners are moved by the music and spiritual energy building up as the service progresses. Although there is sadness because the loved one is no longer physically available, there is joy in knowing that the deceased has gone to a better place where there will be no more sorrow and where they will be reunited one day with loved ones who went home before them.

Mourners come prepared to render a dynamic farewell. Death is an event that requires rejoicing. After services at the church or funeral home, a grand marshal leads a brass band and an assembled group of mourners, along with the hearse, in a procession to the cemetery to “drop the body.” The band plays solemn music at this time.  Stepping unhurriedly with the beat, participants walk a route down city streets. When they reach the cemetery, they “cut the body loose” as the hearse slowly enters for final services where the body is laid to rest.

After the procession of mourners leaves the cemetery, a rousing celebration begins with the band playing an upbeat song like “When the Saints Go Marching In.” The funeral procession continues, growing in size with many community members collectively called “second liners,” who join in the joy with curious bystanders. A spirited dance called the “second line” is prominent among the celebrants. Many participants bob umbrellas, some brightly decorated, and wave handkerchiefs in the air to the hot-sauce beat of the music. Surely, the deceased must be ecstatic with the large turnout of well-wishers expressing such jubilance in the send-off.

This video features part of the homegoing celebration of Juanita Brooks, who was a prominent jazz and gospel singer. Wanda Rouzan, a popular performing artist known as the Sweetheart of New Orleans, serves as grand marshal. The focus is on the musical transition from slow and somber to spirited as the funeral procession progresses with second liners.

You can learn more about New Orleans at my New Orleans Memories website.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at booksellers such as Amazon.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

“Defining Moments” Poem: Hospice Volunteering and Life

Each chapter of my book Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes ends with an original poem relating to the chapter. “Defining Moments” was written after I realized that a series of events having nothing to do with anyone close to me dying had led to my becoming a hospice volunteer. Previous to these events, I was not attracted to being actively involved in the healthcare profession as a caregiver and advocate for seniors. Nobody is more surprised than yours truly that I am an eldercare consultant, author and blogger now.

Several readers have told me that “Defining Moments” resonates with them. As a writer, I appreciate knowing when something I have written has connected with other people. But I was especially surprised one day when a reader who had actually memorized the poem approached me while reciting it. This was followed by a heartfelt explanation of a defining moment in his life. Perhaps this poem will remind you of a defining moment in your own life.


Defining Moments

They come without warning,

grab us in chokeholds of change,

fling us into outer space

where past meets future.

In this realm resonating

with first-time knowledge,

we awaken wide-eyed,

infused with wisdom

to turn around, stand still

or move forward with clarity.

No matter how they smack,

stroke, lift, drop, push, kiss

or kick us to get our attention,

when they finish their mission,

we are permanently scarred.

©Frances Shani Parker


Frances Shani Parker, Author
Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes
Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Successful Hospice-Nursing Home Partnerships (Research)

A hospice volunteer in Detroit nursing homes for many years, I am familiar with the benefits and problems that can occur when hospices and nursing homes operate as partners. These partnerships can work very well when certain best practices are followed. What do successful partnerships between hospices and nursing homes look like?

This study by Brown Medical School uses case studies of six nursing homes and hospices working collaboratively. Interviews were held with care providers and chief executive and financial officers regarding seven domains critical to successful collaboration. These were the results:

1) Nursing home-hospice collaborators were philosophically and otherwise aligned; they had similar missions, understood their differing approaches to care, and administrators demonstrated an openness and support for the collaboration.

2) Hospices developed infrastructures to correspond to the uniqueness and complexity of the nursing home environment. For example, they hired nurses with nursing home backgrounds, created teams dedicated to nursing home care, and trained hospice staff in problem solving and conflict resolution.

3) Care collaboration processes focused on the importance of two-way communication by actively soliciting and sharing information with nursing home staff and responding to nursing home staff and administrators' concerns.

This successful partnership model demonstrates how well collaboration can work when hospices and nursing home leaders commit to operating strategically using communication, flexibility, and skills to match staffing to the nursing home environment. 

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Suicide Prevention and Older Adults (Video 3:10)

Older adults kill themselves intentionally over 50% more than young people do in America. Each year more than 6,300 older adults take their own lives. Unfortunately, suicide among the elderly continues to lack the intense prevention and research focus that it should receive. 

Older white men have been particularly at-risk for suicide for the past half century. They are eight times more likely to kill themselves than are women of the same age group. They have almost twice the rate of all other groups of elderly men. This situation continues to escalate with the increase of millions of baby boomers (born 1946-1964) reaching senior status. The continued rise in elderly male suicides has the potential for creating a national crisis in geriatric mental health if more prevention strategies are not used.

In this video, Dr. Yeates Conwell, Director, Geriatric Psychiatry Program Director, Center for Study and Prevention of Suicide, University of Rochester Medical Center talks about the four Ds that contribute to suicide risk in older adults.

 

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Nursing Assistant (CNA) Omar Cain With Loads of Inspiration (Video 6:38)

One of the extras that enriched my experiences as a hospice volunteer in Detroit nursing homes was the ongoing contact I had with staff members and residents.  I particularly appreciated my interactions with nursing assistants, also referred to as CNAs and nurse aides.  Because they worked closely with residents, I had many opportunities to talk with them. They seemed glad to have me there assisting my hospice patients while lightening their workload, especially at mealtimes. They shared their concerns about low pay, staff shortages, difficult work conditions, and not being appreciated.

Like employees on any job, CNAs were varied in their work performance. A famous American actress named Lena Horne  said, “It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it.” Two people can experience exactly the same circumstances and respond in totally different ways. I found that many CNAs valued their jobs and relationships with residents, even during stressful situations. They made positive choices about how to carry their loads while working to improve conditions. Attitude was everything. This wasn’t always easy, especially on a daily basis or during the middle of a crisis. I have seen a CNA get slapped so hard by a dementia patient that she almost fell. But she maintained her composure and moved on while another CNA interceded. The passion they had for what they were doing helped them overcome adversity.

I don’t know Omar Cain, the CNA in the video that follows. But he demonstrates a spirit of caring commitment to residents he serves at Golden Living Center. A rapper and hero to many, he uplifts others with loads of inspiration. Omar models a message we can all embrace on how to carry our loads during daily encounters at work and in life.

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

Oncology Nurses, Cancer, and Palliative Care (Research, Video 1:39)

In an earlier post, I mentioned the confusion many people have regarding what palliative care is. One problem is the close association they make between palliative care and hospice care. Those with misinformation include some who work in the healthcare field.

Oncology nurses provide and supervise care for cancer patients who are chronically or critically ill. The “Oncology Nursing Forum” presents results from a study at George Mason University. Researchers examined how some oncology nurses define palliative care, their views about who should and should not receive palliative care, and their beliefs about palliative care decision-making. These nurses’ beliefs include who should be involved in making palliative care decisions and how decisions should be managed. Interviewed were twelve nurses representing different aspects of oncology nursing.

Findings indicate that most of the oncology nurses interviewed focused on symptom management and made no distinction between hospice and palliative care. Palliative care was viewed as care only for patients near the end of life. Nurses perceived their own involvement in decision-making regarding palliative care as limited and indirect. These perceptions cause concern because they could limit palliative care that is appropriate for cancer patients who may not be eligible for hospice care.

While this study involved a small group of oncology nurses, it reinforces the need for more education and clinical experience so palliative care can be used to benefit more patients. Dr. Diane Meier, Director of the Center to Advance Palliative Care, defines palliative care in this video titled “What is Palliative Care?”

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Home Funerals: An Introduction (Video 4:17)

Many years ago, death rituals in America were a continuation of the family’s natural involvement with the deceased at home. Even today, some people view them as extensions of the hospice philosophy. After a death took place, the body of the deceased was prepared at home for viewing. Mourners came to pay their respects, console the family, and offer other forms of assistance. The family appreciated this outpouring of support from the community. After the funeral, the body was buried.

Involvement with death-ritual arrangements was and still is therapeutic. In addition to saving thousands of dollars, some families want to have more control over how the deceased loved one’s life is celebrated and cared for after death. Having a personalized home funeral is an option they embrace. Most states allow home funerals as long as legal documentation related to claiming the body and arrangements for burial or cremation are handled appropriately. Some families work with funeral homes on these matters.

This video titled “Home Funerals” is an introduction to this dignified death ritual, another alternative for family and friends to unfasten their earthly connections with loved ones who die. Comments are especially welcome from those who have participated in home funerals.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Alzheimer’s Dementia Hospice Story: Coping With Grief

“She’ll rise out of her grave…”

This true story about a conversation with my hospice patient is one of many in my book Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes.

When Mamie Wilson became my hospice patient, she had several unusual qualities that made me wonder. At sixty-five with Alzheimer’s dementia, she was the youngest patient assigned to me after years of hospice volunteering. She had the same name as my grandmother, and I had her grandmother's name. When we made these discoveries during our first meeting, we took them as signs that we were destined to have a great patient-volunteer relationship. In time, I learned that the most unusual thing about Mamie was what she said.

“Is your mother alive?” Mamie asked me one day.

“No, she died a few years ago in her eighties,” I responded.

“You know, you can still be with her and talk to her if you want to.”

“Oh, I know we can still communicate.”

“No, I mean for real. You can be with her in person. Just get her clothes together and her shoes. Don’t forget her coat. They say it’s cold outside. Take them to the cemetery where she’s buried. Just set them on top of her grave and wait. She’ll rise out of her grave and put them on. Then you can take her home with you. In every way, she’ll be the same person you knew. Other people won’t be able to see her, but you will.”

“Hmm. I’ve never heard that before.”

“Most people haven’t. I know about it because I did it with my two grown sons. They were both murdered on the same day in a drive-by shooting. I didn’t know how I would get through the pain. Finally, I took their clothes to the cemetery and did what I just told you. Both of them came home with me. It was the best day of my life. I got my sons back.” Satisfied, she smiled.

Some people will dismiss this story as crazed comments of a demented woman. But, if you really listen, you’ll hear the magnificent empowerment in her words.

© Frances Shani Parker

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and several other countries at online and offline booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Help for Children Who Are Caregivers (Video 5:34)

Imagine being one of hundreds of thousands of children, some as young as eight, who must serve as a major caregiver to an adult on a daily basis. This is the reality of many school children, particularly in racial-ethnic minority communities and among low to mid-income families.

As a former school principal, it was not unusual for me to have students in elementary through high school grades with attendance problems due to caregiving responsibilities at homes when no one else was available to help. These children’s responsibilities included medicating, dressing, feeding, bathing, and more. The emotional stress of child caregivers can be even more harmful to them than the physical burdens. Unfortunately, as the economy struggles and the ranks of baby boomers expand, increasing numbers of children are being assigned caregiving responsibilities.

More people are recognizing this problem, and for some children, but not nearly enough, help is being provided. The Caregiving Youth Project sponsored by the American Association of Caregiving Youth provides in-school assistance and a caregiver camp for children who are caregivers. This gives them an opportunity to receive guidance, support, and social interaction with other children who can understand what they are going through as they manage adult responsibilities. This "New York Times" video shadows the lives of three children who are caregivers and highlights this national program that assists them.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes” 

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Hospice-Palliative Care Doctors and Burnout (Research, Video 5:48)

Every profession has the potential for burnout, even when workers love what they do. With the growth in hospice-palliative medicine (HPM), more research is shining a light on how doctors in this field prevent burnout and promote self-care among themselves.

This research by the Mayo Clinic was reported in the Journal of Palliative Medicine. Participants included 40 HPM doctors practicing in America. These doctors were surveyed online about burnout prevention strategies and ways to find fulfillment in their professions. These were strategies used by 30 of 40 HPM physicians (19 males, 11 females) for burnout prevention:

1)    Physical well-being (60%)

2)    Professional relationships (57%)

3)    Transcendental perspectives (43%)

4)    Oral communication with others (43%)

5)    Hobbies (40%)

6)    Clinical variety (37%)

7)    Personal relationships (37%)

8)    Personal boundaries (37%)

9)    Time away from work (27%)

10)  Passion for one's work (20%)

11)  Realistic expectations (13%)

12)  Humor and laughter (13%)

13)  Memories of patients (10%)

HPM doctors use a variety of strategies to avoid burnout and maintain resilience. This research highlights the importance of dealing with burnout as it relates to doctors’ self-awareness and self-care. More research is needed to help physicians recognize burnout and individualized strategies for supporting themselves and their colleagues. This video titled “Palliative Curriculum - Part 15 - Cancer Doctors and Burnout” presents a scenario about burnout concerns.

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