Photo by Sunny Hallauer

In a society that emphasizes youth and life-saving medical procedures, we often forget that each of us will die some day and that quality of life is more important than length of life. As a family physician, I saw many patients sacrifice entirely their quality of life in order to live a few more days. Their bodies were in so much pain that they had no attention left to give to saying "good-bye" to loved ones and to the lives that they had led. This led me into hospice work where the emphasis is on quality of life, comfort, and support of the dying person and their family.

I am trained in conventional medicine through a medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine and was board-certified in Family Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Care until retirement.

In 1994, I wrote a book about hospice and near-death experiences, Love is the Link: A Hospice Doctor Shares Her Experience of Near-Death and Dying. Over the past fifteen years, I have spoken nationally about end-of-life issues and hospice.

I am available to consult and lecture at hospitals about end-of-life issues, particularly about broaching the subject of death with patients and dealing with grief in our practice as physicians. Please see the variety of settings at which I have spoken.