School: Bucknell

Having experienced the quality of care provided to relatives in my personal life who had benefitted from hospice care, I was pushed  in the initial direction of becoming a volunteer just to give back to an organization that had given so much to the people in my life in their various conditions of dying. Since … Continue reading “Healthcare for the Dying”

Though I was unable to visit hospice patients this year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, I feel that I have grown exponentially as a person and a future health care professional. I thought that I understood death when I applied to the Athena Institute Pre-Med Hospice Volunteer Program, but suddenly the world is … Continue reading “Why We Do This”

Unfortunately, because of Corona I was unable to form a relationship with a patient, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t greatly impacted by this program. Throughout the course of this past year, and the reflection prompts that we have completed, I have greatly increased my knowledge about the dying process and have definitely become more … Continue reading “Acceptance of impermanence”

After completing the 2021 Pre-Med hospice program, I would like to emphasize how important this program is not only to our medical school applications, but to our personal perspectives and experience with death. This program provides the unique opportunity for students to develop a stronger understanding and more peaceful relationship with palliative care and death. … Continue reading “Death and Dying: What did I learn?”

The Evangelical hospice program has been a great experience for me thus far. This past semester, I looked forward to visiting patient Eileen every Friday. Eileen always smiled when I walked into her room. Although she did not remember me, I still feel as though we built a friendship throughout each visit. During my visits, … Continue reading “The Necessity of Positive Relationships in Healthcare”

As a hospice volunteer with the Athena Institute, I’ve had many valuable realizations as a premed student and just as an understanding person moving forward in my career. Many aspects of this experience enlightened me to new ways of thinking about and understanding people that I haven’t been exposed to before in my life. A … Continue reading “Something as Little as Companionship Makes a Difference”

Over the course of the year, I received training that allowed me to meet people through the hospice program close to my school, Bucknell University. I had one patient for a couple weeks (with winter break and the new remote learning schedule, I was unable to meet with multiple people). I definitely learned a lot … Continue reading “What I Learned From My Hospice Experience”

Death has only begun to affect my life in the last few years. Prior, I rarely thought about death and what it entailed, and I felt detached when others would talk about the passing of their loved ones. However, I began to think more about death when my grandpa was dying in the hospital during … Continue reading “Planning and Impermanence”

Although my time was cut short as a hospice volunteer, it was an extremely meaningful experience for me overall. The initial training program taught me so much about ways to look at death and dying and how to help others cope with the pain and pressure that comes along with it. I now feel much … Continue reading “How Hospice Volunteering Changed My Outlook on Medicine”

I chose to volunteer with hospice after having lost three of my grandparents, who all benefitted from end-of-life care from various hospice programs. Each of their situations were extremely different in terms of the kind of care they needed, considering that their conditions included congenital heart disease, Parkinson’s, and ALS. I felt that I had … Continue reading “The Missing Piece of Healthcare”