Death and Afterlife ++ WEEKS 10-12 Quiz

Questions based on items from study quide

Chaplain Kolitz - How did she respond:

What kinds of questions or topics do people want to talk about when dying?

Are there any topics they don’t want to talk about?

(zoom recording timestamp - 00:10:52)

“In talking with the hospice chaplain, they're surprised that the people I work with do not want to talk about God, do not want to talk about Jesus, do not want to talk about any…

higher power, because they're afraid.”

The topic can vary; they just have a conversation (ex. baseball ) and sometimes go deeper into what lies beyond after death

Chaplain Kolitz - How did she respond:

We’ve talked about the 5 stages of grief - Have you seen those, or not seen those in both the patients and families you encounter?

(zoom recording timestamp - 00:15:24)

The stages do not happen in order. people jump back and forth to different stages

“I would say, by the time people get to hospice, if they're hospice-minded, which is a term that we use often.”

Most people have accepted their situation by the time they come to hospice

Chaplain Kolitz - How did she respond:

There are lots of ways that our contemporary culture seems uncomfortable with mortality, with talking about death and dying.

How do you see that in your work?

(zoom recording timestamp ~ 02:30:42)

“I often shut down conversations when I answer, because they…people do not want to talk about it. I either get, you know, creep… creepily interested, or don't want to talk about it, conversation over.”

It’s hard to talk about it because fundamentally people fear death, so naturally it causes discomfort.

Chaplain Kolitz - How did she respond:

We’ve talked in this class about the idea of the “Good Death”. How does hospice contribute to a “Good Death”? What’s still missing for a “Good Death” for your patients?

(zoom recording timestamp ~ 02:37:13?)

For hospice a good death largely comes down to a patient’s comfort. The main goal of this care is to make a person’s last moments as comfortable as possible

“And then I… Ultimately, good death means comfortable. You know, is it pain-free, as pain-free as possible?”

But there is no one correct treatment that applies to all, “You know, and what's a good death for one person is…Not for others, you know, it's just individual.”

“So the answer to what a good death is could be literally anything. But foundationally, to me.

You know, Was it as comfortable and as peaceful as possible?”

What else did you learn from Chaplain Kolitz?

(Many things you could say for this)

ex. how one becomes a chaplain

“So, for my master's, I focused on chaplaincy, and focused on that individual pastoral, spiritual, and emotional care.

So I had that, you need a master's for this career.

And I also have several units of CPE, which is Clinical Pastoral Education.

Which is… Basically, a whole bunch of internships that you do in different settings.”

Difference between Hospice and Palliative care

Palliative Care

• When it’s used: At any stage of a serious illness (like cancer, heart failure, or Parkinson’s disease)

• Goal: Relieve symptoms (pain, nausea, stress) and improve quality of life

• Treatment approach: Can be given alongside curative treatments (like chemotherapy or surgery)

• Where it happens: Hospitals, clinics, or at home

Think of palliative care as extra support while you’re still treating the illness

Hospice Care

• When it’s used: When a person is nearing the end of life, typically with a prognosis of about 6 months or less

• Goal: Comfort care only—not focused on curing the illness

• Treatment approach: Curative treatments are usually stopped

• Where it happens: Often at home, but also in hospice centers, hospitals, or nursing homes

Hospice is a type of palliative care specifically for end-of-life

Hospice in prisions -

benefits to volunteers + prisoners?

Prisoners can volunteer in a hospice

as a reward for good behavior,

It allows them to reflect on how they’ve lived their lives

and feel more empathetic

Hospice in prisions -

benefits to DNRs?

in 55% of prisons, patients are required to sign a DNR if they want hospice care.

Aging in Prison -

What is an “older adult” in prison settings? why is the age range different from “typical” older adults?

An older adult in prison is 55+, and this percentage has increased because of targeted arrests (unhoused, drug users, cognitively impaired.

Longer sentences - “Tough on crime “

Aging in Prison -

Why are prisoners aging? What are some of the causes of the aging in prison population>

Prisoners are aging because they are spending longer time incarcerated. People also age faster in prison losing 2 yrs off their life expectancy every year spent

Pain management for ill/dying prisoners

It’s hard for prisoners to manage pain in prison for several reasons:

• Medical personnel distrusting accounts of pain

• ”Macho” prison culture

• Some healthcare staff think prisoners deserve to suffer

• Prisoners distrust healthcare staff

• Pain is what prisons use as punishment

Aging prisoners and recidivism ( re-offence / arrest)

The older someone is, the less likely they are to be re-arrested after being released

People release 65 and older are the least likely group to be re-arrested within 5 years after release

Arrest rates are very low for older adults and near 0 over 65

Furman v Georgia-

What 4 things could make it cruel and unusual punishment?

1) Degrading to human dignity

2) Inflicted in a wholly arbitrary fashion

3) Totally rejected throughout society

4) Patently unnecessary

Furman v Georgia-

Doctors and the death penalty

AMA forbids doctors from participating in capital punishment, no way to enforce it

Doctors need to treat death row patients so they can’t escape punishment

The Lethal drugs used are hard to come by and often illegal means are used to get them

Furman v Georgia-

US support for the death penalty

Most executions happen in the South, even though they are legal

in 32 states (5 of those have a moratorium, though).

The US is 5th when it comes to executions

Furman v Georgia-

Religions and the death penalty official views, views of “regular” people

Most religions stand against capital punishment (except Islam, the Lutheran Church, and the Southern Baptist Convention)

The Catholic Church allows for the possibility of the death penalty (Pope Francis Opposed)

55% of Americans support

“In the Executioner’s Shadow” documentary-

Main themes and takeaways?

The death penalty is controversial, with some arguing it should still be in place for the harshest of crimes/ criminals. Others argue it’s too finite and doesn’t leave room for innocents who were wrongfully charged with crimes

“In the Executioner’s Shadow” documentary-

What are some of the reasons given to support or oppose the death penalty?

People argue that the death penalty is a solution that ensures that an individual will never commit the same crime. As well as deter others from committing the same. They also see it as a form of retribution, “an eye for an eye”. Also, it would hopefully provide closure for the victim’s family.

People against the death penalty argue that there’s a lack of clear deterrence. Also, that its more expensive than lifetime incarceration, the ethical concerns, and bias/unfair application

“In the Executioner’s Shadow” documentary-
What are some of the moral / ethical / religious questions people in the documentary wrestle with?

There are a lot of moral and ethical concerns with the death penalty because people argue that who gives us the right to end someone’s life?

Even if someone deserves to die, who says we deserve to kill them?

Near Death Experiences -

Frequency

Nearly 35-40% who reach/return from the brink of death report NDEs

4-8% of the general population

Near Death Experiences -

Characteristics

Ineffability- unexplainable, hard to articulate

Not a template experience - But some common elements

Peace / quiet / positive emotions

Light at the end of the tunnel, OBE (out of body experience), Meeting being made of light (angels Jesus?)

Near Death Experiences -

Connections with religious practices / beliefs

Experiences can be culturally/religiously influenced

for example, seeing being of light, christians may interpret as angels or Jesus

(no clear link between religious orientation and NDEs)

Near Death Experiences -

Theories about NDEs

The universal aspects of NDEs, why are there common traits to NDEs shared across the world and different cultures

Individuals may only be hallucinating apparitions of the dead because they believe themselves to be dying.