Free screening and facilitated discussion in Randolph on June 6th
“Being Mortal,” a PBS Frontline documentary based on the 2014 bestselling book by Boston Surgeon Atul Gawande, will be shown on Tuesday June 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Chandler Center for the Arts, Upper Room.
The event, which is sponsored by Gifford’s Palliative and Hospice Care and Last Mile Ride, will be followed by a group discussion facilitated by Dr. Cristine Maloney and Islene Runningdeer, members of Gifford’s Palliative and Hospice Care team. It is free and open to public and light refreshments will be served.
Using stories of patients and their families, the 55-minute film explores relationships between physicians and people with terminal illnesses. “Being Mortal” highlights how a dying patient’s true wishes for end of life care are often not honored—or even known—in a medical system focused on curing disease, and stresses the importance of planning ahead and talking with family members about end-of-life decisions.
“I think all of us have thoughts about how we live our lives and how we will die, but it is still a fairly taboo subject,” said Dr. Cristine Maloney. “We want to promote anything that helps people in our community talk about this.”
The “Before I Die Project,” another community outreach project sponsored by the Palliative and Hospice Care team, will also be launched at this event. A chalkboard wall with the statement: Before I die I want to ______,” will be placed by the downtown Gazebo so community members can add their thoughts and reflections to the display.
Artist Candy Chang first started this participatory public art project on an abandoned house in her New Orleans neighborhood after the death of someone she loved. The exterior walls were covered with chalkboard paint and the project inspired people to reflect on life and death and publicly express their feelings. More than 2,000 “Before I Die” walls have been created in more than 79 countries, including Iraq, China, Brazil, Kazakhstan, and South Africa.
“We’ve been talking about creating a wall project for Randolph for more than a year, but the Sunshine Rotary Club’s offer to actually build one for us made this happen!” said Maloney.
The Before I Die project was also sponsored by Gifford’s Palliative and Hospice Care and Last Mile Ride. For more information on these projects visit PBS or http://candychang.com/work/before-i-die-in-nola/
