Friday, February 11, 2011

Hospice Voices: Lessons for Living at the End of Life PDF

Rating: (3 reviews) Author: Visit Amazon's Eric Lindner Page ISBN : 9781442220591 New from $17.18 Format: PDF
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Review

In this endearing and personal book, Attorney and entrepreneur Lindner details his experiences volunteering in hospice with colorful storytelling, practical advice, and encouragement for those coming to terms with the end of life. As a new volunteer, Lindner learns that there are 5300 hospices in the U.S. and they rely heavily on volunteers. While Lindner’s early training included “dos and don’ts,” he tends to follow his own path, causing some raised eyebrows and, in one case, nearly landing himself in a lawsuit. Still, Lindner’s heart is in the right place and he soldiers on with a positive attitude, especially given that a hospice volunteer never knows what he’s stepping into. One thing is for certain, a hospice volunteer must deal with profound moral dilemmas and emotional issues. Lindner’s open access to patients combined with his hectic travel schedule has him receiving calls at all times of day and night and on various continents and he’s frank about these life and death issues. Lindner takes on this heavy subject from a special perspective and he does so eloquently, providing insight and inspiration to those who read along. (Publishers Weekly)

This is an honest, pull no punches look at coming to terms with the one thing we will all do—die. In this well-documented and highly-readable book, Lindner proves an adept chronicler of the individual human stories that make up his journey to understand that beauty and grace can exist at the end stages of life. Lindner deftly reminds us of the power of the small things, the simple gestures and the importance of dignity for those that face a terminal situation. Throughout the book, we meet people approaching the end of life in their own individual ways, with different measures of love, faith and family.

This book simultaneously opened my heart and broke it as each story taught me how hope and dignity can exist even in terminal situations. As a hospice volunteer, Lindner teaches us all that the ability to ease and bear witness to someone’s journey at the end stage of life is perhaps the ultimate gift one human can give another. (Lee Woodruff, NY Times #1 Bestselling Author)

Heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure claim more lives than any other disease state. Over my career I've seen my share of sadness due to the ravages of end-stage cardiovascular disease. But I've also seen terminal patients and their loved ones wring out great joy and meaning in the final months of life. This book is joyful, insightful, witty, and truly meaningful. It tugged at my heart, tickled my funny bone, and served up numerous insights and tips that had escaped me when trying to advise patients and their families. What a marvelous set of stories that should be read by all adults. It inspires us to live life to the fullest and respect and learn from the past in order to better deal with future uncertainty. (Roger S. Blumenthal, M.D., FAHA, FACC, Kenneth Jay Pollin Professor of Cardiology; director at Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Diseas; author of many works including Preventive Cardiology: Companion to Braunwald’s Heart Disease)

As a physician who cares for the chronically ill and dying I all too often see people who are alone in the midst of their suffering. Trained volunteers, like Eric Lindner, play such an immensely important role in providing that companionship to the patient. His book reminds all of us that we are invited to attend to others – not to change them, not to judge them, not to fix them. We are there simply to listen and to be witnesses to the suffering and joy of others in their living and in their dying. Presence to others, as Lindner describes so poignantly in his book, is a transformative sacred act for the patient and for the companion. Eric Lindner’s book inspires all of us to enter the sacredness of living and dying with openness and courage. (Christina M. Puchalski, MD, MS, FACP; director of George Washington University’s Institute for Spirituality and Health; professor of George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences)

This book intrigued me because of the author’s pledge to donate 100% of his profits to charity. His book moved me because it's an illustration that there are many ways we can provide love and justice in this world. We think of love in our daily affections for those close to us. We think of justice in the work of social movements. But all religions teach that at the heart of justice is love, hospitality, and kindness to strangers. It is hard to imagine a better example of exactly that than this book, and in reading it, one comes away knowing that as in sacred scripture, Lindner has encountered and served angels themselves. (Timothy L. Fort, PhD, JD, Everleigh Professor of Business Ethics, Kelley School of Business, Indiana University; author of many works including Business, Integrity, and Peace: Beyond Geopolitical and Disciplinary Boundaries)

Eric Lindner gives voice to those in their final days so that we may better listen, love, and learn from their example. A must read for any caregiver - volunteer or family. (Vince Evans, MSW, Vice President of Patient Services, Hospice of the Valley)

About the Author

Eric Lindner is an attorney and entrepreneur. He has been a hospice companion caregiver since 2009. He divides his time between Warrenton, VA and Kauai, Hawaii.
Direct download links available for PRETITLE Hospice Voices: Lessons for Living at the End of Life Hardcover POSTTITLE
  • Hardcover: 232 pages
  • Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 1 edition (October 6, 2013)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1442220597
  • ISBN-13: 978-1442220591
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Hospice Voices: Lessons for Living at the End of Life PDF

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