Research shows that many people who are terminally ill fear a painful death more than the loss of their life. But pain at the end of life can usually be relieved if physicians and clinicians are equipped with the right training and resources.
In fact, according to the American Pain Foundation, it has been predicted that 98 percent of all pain problems can be relieved or reduced. Yet despite the widespread desire for comfort and the potential to provide this comfort, pain control is often woefully inadequate.
HFA's 2006 teleconference will focus on Pain Management at the End of Life: Bridging the Gap Between Knowledge and Practice. Moderated by Frank Sesno of CNN, this program will be broadcast live via satellite from 1:30-4 p.m. EDT on April 5, 2006.
Pain Management at the End of Life: Bridging the Gap between Knowledge and Practice will offer professional caregivers and laypeople across the country an opportunity to learn more about treating pain at the end of life and to collaborate with other caregivers in their communities.
HFA encourages any organization interested in improving pain management for patients at the end of life to participate.
Hosting a downlink site for HFA's award-winning teleconference offers caregiving organization invaluable opportunities:
*Serves as a tool to increase awareness of the organization in the community
*Offers an opportunity to build relationships with other caregivers, advocates, and community leaders
*Helps frontline health workers, family caregivers, and advocates stay current on end-of-life topics
*Offers an opportunity for low-cost continuing education credit to nurses, social workers, physicians, funeral directors, counselors, clergy, EMS workers, and others
Featured panelists include:
Yvette Colón, MSW, ACSW, BCD, American Pain Foundation
Kenneth J. Doka, Ph.D., M.Div., Hospice Foundation of America
W.A. Drew Edmondson, Attorney General, State of Oklahoma
Kathleen M. Foley, M.D., Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Kelli Gershon, A.P.N., R.N., University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Jack Gordon, Chairman and CEO, Hospice Foundation of America
William M. Lamers, Jr., M.D., HFA and The Lamers Medical Group
Brad Stuart, M.D., Sutter VNA and Hospice
Douglas J. Weschules, PharmD, BCPS , excelleRx, Inc.
Hospice Foundation of America's 2006 teleconference will examine the gap between knowledge and application of effective pain control in the person with a terminal condition, including pharmaceutical, psycho-social, spiritual, and complementary aspects of pain management.
Discussions will examine ways in which health care workers and the general public can work together to improve the societal approach to pain management.
These subjects and other interesting issues will be brought to the audience by some of the leading researchers and practitioners currently working in pain management.
It is easy to host a site. After registering with Hospice Foundation of America for a nominal materials fee, site coordinators will receive a coordinator's manual with complete directions.
In order to view the program, all that is needed is a room for the audience, a video monitor, and a satellite that can receive C or KU-band frequencies (which can often be found in local hospitals, community colleges, and libraries).
The teleconference is seen each year by more than 125,000 people in more than 2,000 communities in the U.S. and Canada.
To learn more about hosting a site or other ways to participate, call 800--854-3402 or visit www.hospicefoundation.org.
