A Rally for Our Loved Ones and Ourselves

In honor of National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD), April 16, I’m taking a break from blogging this week and spending my writing time with my loved ones.  I hope that this guest post, by Nathan Kottkamp, Founder and Chair of NHDD, will inspire you to think about the conversations we all should be having with our own loved ones about an uncomfortable but important topic – planning for when we die.

Caregiving and Hospice, April 8 - April 14, 2012

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Choosing an elder care mediator: Very important in caregiving, http://aarp.us/HUyfww via @AARPFamily
  
  
• Yes! Biting Of The Tongue Therapy (BOTT) and how to use it, http://huff.to/HAsDIn by @NurseBarbDehn
  
  
• Insightful piece in Chicago Tribune about hospice, http://fb.me/10X4RXaNj via @NHPCO_news
  
  
• Reconnecting Through Art, http://j.mp/IN5JxJ via NY Times
  
  
• The Alzheimers Project: HBO Documentary, http://j.mp/IN57Ii via Pallimed

Caregiving and Hospice, May 15 - May 21

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Video: enhancing care to Veterans at end of life, http://ow.ly/4YCDV via @NHPCO_news @DeathwDignity @HospiceGSO

• Fall Prevention: Excellent tips list with pictures of each, http://ow.ly/4ZN7q via @CaregiverTweets

• Lighten up: "Dying for a Laugh" video, http://bit.ly/mTQwbz @deathwdignity via @StoryForHealing

• Finding your inner strength while caregiving, http://bit.ly/il5IIm via @Spector_Health

• Dispel the Myth: Awareness of Terminal Cancer Doesn’t Impact Survival, http://bit.ly/lwaKOe via @hospicepharmacy

Caregiving and Hospice, April 10 - April 16

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• In honor of National Health Decisions Day, check out all the posts on @Pallimed about advance care, http://hpm.md/hk4Tdw by @ctsinclair via @ewidera @NHDD

• Hospice of the Valley volunteer provides respite, keeps memories, http://goo.gl/W4ln7 via @CeCeTodd 

• Video: Tips for family meetings http://bit.ly/geNM6n by @graceful_aging via @ShelleyWebbRN 

• Helping hospice patients nationwide keep their pets, pay for pet food, vet and grooming costs, @petpeaceofmind 

• People don’t know all that hospice can do for them and how little it costs, http://bit.ly/gnGUK0 via @hospicepharmacy

April 16 Is National Health Care Decisions Day

The National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) Initiative is a collaborative effort of national, state and community organizations committed to ensuring that all adults with decision-making capacity in the United States have the information and opportunity to communicate and document their healthcare decisions.

To highlight the importance of advance healthcare decision-making, April 16 has been designated as National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD).

Hospice and Caregiving, March 20 - March 26

Best selections from Grief Healing's Twitter stream this week:

• Messages to Loved Ones offers Hospice, Alzheimer's, others a way to preserve, share, tell their stories, http://bit.ly/gNIICk by @EarlC

• Maintaining sexual intimacy at the end of life, http://bit.ly/hQFrcf by @angelamorrow

• Advice on talking about end-of-life care, http://ow.ly/1bVHeF via @RecordEagle

• Free tip sheet to support Alzheimers caregivers, http://bit.ly/gNR75C by @HlthAdvocate via @HealthProponent

• Informative! Caregiving as seen from two sides, http://bit.ly/hcN525 via @seniorhomes