Tag: death

  • Choosing Peace: Our Care, Our Choice

    Choosing Peace: Our Care, Our Choice

    Dying at home can be traumatic for loved ones. We long for a peaceful walk into a beautiful sunset. But most have never seen anyone die and that first indelible experience will stick with us. We may wish to die in our sleep, suffer an accident where we “never knew what happened” or drop dead…

  • Everybody Should Have One

    We have a right to say “enough is enough” when it comes to medical care, including the use of respirators and tube feeding. We also have the right to name who will speak for us when we cannot speak for ourselves. Having a clear and comprehensive advance health care directive is only way to be…

  • Aid-in-Dying for Terminally Ill Patients

    In January 1, 2019, Hawai‘i became just the seventh state in the US to permit medical aid in dying. The Our Care, Our Choice (OCOCA) law allows terminally ill adult patients with capacity to make medical decisions to be prescribed an aid-in-dying medication if all the requirements are met.

  • Thanatology Makes Us Think

    I am honored that Marian University accepted me into the Masters of Thanatology program this past Fall. “Thanatology? What is that?” is the common remark I hear when I tell people of my new adventure. A thanatologist is a designated thinker about death. They help people die better than they otherwise might. I believe every…

  • Mom Had ‘A Good Death’

    On a Sunday morning this past July, Alice Hu Chew Yee, 81, asked her family to gather by her hospital bed, where she expressed her love to each member, listened to her favorite music played by her son and son-in-law, and helped to plan her own funeral, right down to flower arrangements. The next day,…