Registration Open for Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness Needs & Communication of the Dying

  • August 06, 2018

Maggie Callanan, R.N.
Maggie Callanan, R.N.

Registration is now open for Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness Needs and Communication of the Dying, a seminar hosted by Brookings Health System Hospice.

The event will be held Thursday, Aug. 30 starting at noon with the presentation running from 12:30 to 4 p.m. at the Community Life Center, located at the corner of Sixth Street and Seventh Avenue in Brookings. Cost is $50 and includes lunch.

The seminar features Maggie Callanan, R.N., a world-renowned speaker on topics relating to the care of the dying, as well as coping strategies for hospice staff and volunteers. She is the co-author of the celebrated book Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness Needs and Communication of the Dying.

Since becoming a hospice nurse in 1981, Callanan has studied, taught, and written about death and dying. This includes the unique and symbolic communication of the dying, which is often labeled as “confused language” and consequently often ignored by professional and family caregivers. Addressing medical, personal, emotional, and spiritual aspects of life’s final journeys, Callanan delivers practical, no-nonsense answers to difficult questions tempered by humor, wisdom, and compassion.

Dr. Rick Holm, M.D.
Dr. Rick Holm, M.D.

Opening for Callanan is Internist Dr. Rick Holm, medical director for Brookings Health System Hospice. He will present Fearing Death is Dangerous to Your Health.

Registration deadline is Aug. 23. To register, contact Home Health & Hospice Director Lynne Kaufmann at (605) 696-8090 or lkaufmann@brookingshealth.org.

About Brookings Health System

Brookings Health System, located in Brookings, South Dakota, includes a 49-bed hospital, the 79-bed The Neighborhoods at Brookview nursing home, Brookhaven Estates senior living apartments, Yorkshire Eye Clinic, and medical clinics in Arlington, White and Volga, South Dakota. It is a non-profit, city-owned facility that offers the community a full range of inpatient, outpatient, surgical and extended care services. The emergency room is staffed 24 hours a day and provides around the clock patient needs ranging from minor injuries to life threatening crises. For more information about the services offered at Brookings Health System, please call (605) 696-9000 or visit us on the Web at brookingshealth.org.