BRATTLEBORO — On June 14, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Brattleboro Area Hospice will host a community screening of the documentary Being Mortal. After the screening, audience members can participate in a guided conversation on how to take concrete steps to identify and communicate wishes about end-of-life goals and preferences.
A panel of local medical professionals - Denise Paasche, MD; Franz Reichsman, MD; Michele Rowland, MSN/RN, LICSW; and Megan Hawthorne, MSW and advance care planning guides will join the community conversation.
The event will take place at the Marlboro College Graduate Center, 28 Vernon St. This event is free and the public is encouraged to attend.
Being Mortal delves into the hopes of patients and families facing terminal illness. The film investigates the practice of caring for the dying and explores the relationships between patients and their doctors. It follows a surgeon, Dr. Atul Gawande, as he shares stories from the people and families he encounters.
When Gawande's own father gets cancer, his search for answers about how best to care for the dying becomes a personal quest. The film sheds light on how a medical system focused on a cure often leaves out the sensitive conversations that need to happen so a patient's true wishes can be known and honored at the end.
“Being Mortal” underscores the importance of people planning ahead and talking with family members about end-of-life decisions.
In February 2015, Being Mortal aired nationally on the PBS program Frontline. The film is adapted from Gawande's 2014 national best-selling book of the same name.
The free screening is made possible by a grant from The John and Wauna Harman Foundation in partnership with the Hospice Foundation of America.
For more information, or to RSVP, contact Patty Dunn at 802-257-0775, ext. 102, or [email protected].