Welcome To The Heart of Hospice Podcast
"We're here to provide information and education so people can make informed choices about end-of-life care."
Helen Bauer, Host, The Heart of Hospice Podcast
Meet Helen Bauer, BSN, RN
Helen Bauer has been a nurse for over 30 years, specializing in hospice and end of life care since 2009. She's a Certified Hospice and Palliative Registered Nurse with experience in patient care, nursing management, quality and compliance.
Her passion for advocacy at end of life can be heard on the podcast talking about hospice philosophy, how to get the most from your hospice experience, and advance care planning.
Over the years, Helen's helped hundreds of families navigate their hospice journeys by providing support, education, and encouragement.
Helen is a WCN-Fluencer!
Listen to The Heart of Hospice Special Series with Stanford Medicine Palliative Care
Episode One: Grant Smith, M.D., and Emily Linderman, BCC, from the Stanford Health Care palliative care team, are sharing all the basics of palliative care—when to start it, who can benefit from it, and what a PC team does for patients and caregivers.
Here are a few highlights from episode one:
- Palliative care teams are transdisciplinary (consisting of workers with different skills, like physicians, social workers, nurses, and chaplains) and support quality of life
- Palliative care can be provided at any age and stage of an illness
- Palliative care teams are great at helping patients to understand all the information being thrown at them, facilitating family conferences, and coordinating patient care.
- You can find more resources and information about palliative care at caringinfo.org and getpalliativecare.org
Episode Two: With courage and vulnerability, Sheralin Samuels shares her experience as a caregiver for her mom, and their journey through Early Onset Alzheimer’s disease.
Here are a few highlights from episode two:
- Sheralin’s mom Carlys began showing symptoms in 2012, and a definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease wasn’t found until about 10 years later.
- Carlys spent a year in hospice care before she was discharged.
- As a sandwich caregiver, Sheralin cares for her two kids while working a full-time job and ensuring her mom’s needs are being met.
- Being a caregiver has impacted Sheralin’s family in numerous ways, affecting family dynamics, relationships, and finances.
- Sheralin knows there's strength in self-care. Her self-care includes getting outside, enjoying nature, and hiking.
- By creating YouTube videos to help other caregivers, Sheralin creates meaning from her experience.
Watch Sheralin Taylor’s YouTube videos: @A_Daughters_Journey
You can find more resources and information about palliative care at caringinfo.org and getpalliativecare.org
Episode Three: Dr. Jocelyn Jiao and Social Worker Mike Polisso of the Stanford Healthcare Palliative Team know the value of getting to know patients and families from the start of the care relationship.
As part of an interdisciplinary team providing neuropalliative care for people and families living with serious neurological illnesses, they’re supporting patients and caregivers and training other healthcare workers in palliative care.
Here are a few highlights from episode three:
- Jocelyn discussed the importance of finding out communication preferences when it comes to early conversations about advance care planning and disease progression.
- Mike highlighted exploring preference questions with patients and caregivers, and staying curious to create opportunities for personalized care.
- Asking what kind of medical information is important to someone to know can create communication styles that are comfortable for the patient and caregivers.
- Mike finds many people don’t know that palliative care social workers have a variety of roles, including helping with complex medical decision making and dealing with family dynamics that are impacting care.
- Both Mike and Dr. Jiao recognize the need for ongoing self care to support the work they do.
You can find more resources and information about palliative care at caringinfo.org and getpalliativecare.org
Episode Four: Guest Susan Evans shares the ins and outs of caregiving, and talks about her work to support other caregivers dealing with the challenges of Alzheimer’s Disease. As a caregiver, Susan worked to ensure her dad was safe and well cared for. She and her brother incorporated humor into their caregiving journey, and now she works to ensure other caregivers have the resources they need.
Here are a few highlights from episode four:
- Susan knows the power of story sharing, and how caregivers can learn from each other.
- When her dad began experiencing symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease, he took himself to his doctor at Stanford Healthcare.
- Susan recommends taking advantage of the present time caregivers have, to be in the moment instead of trying to remind your person of things they can’t recall.
- Challenges from Alzheimer’s Disease vary from person to person, and caregiver to caregiver.
- Despite the hard times, Susan has found fulfillment and meaning in her caregiving roles.
You can find more resources and information about palliative care at caringinfo.org and getpalliativecare.org
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The Heart of Hospice podcast is dedicated to helping personal and professional caregivers care for someone with a serious illness.
Compassionate Conversations at Life’s End: Featuring Helen Bauer of The Heart of Hospice
By Whole Care Network |
At the Whole Care Network, we believe storytelling connects us. Education empowers us, and compassionate conversation can transform how we experience life and death. That’s why we are honored to spotlight Helen Bauer, RN, CHPN, Host of the Heart of Hospice podcast, founder of Hospice Navigation Services, and proud WCNFluencer. Helen has tirelessly advocated for patients and…
"No Matter Who You Are Or Where You Are In Your Hospice Journey, You Are The Heart of Hospice."
Our Mission
We believe in the healing power of storytelling. The best information and referrals come from authentic care stories shared from one caregiver to another.
We are here to help you find balance through stories you can identify with, resources you can count on, and referrals you can trust, all centered around our 4 Pillars of Care.