More Palliative Medicine Blogs!

So far the world of Hospice and Palliative Medicine related blogs has been slower to grow than emergency room staff or primary care physicians, but we are starting to get a good little community here. Two blogs that should be highlighted are "Dethmama Chronicles: The true adventures of a hospice nurse" and "DNR/DNI" by Leo Levi.

Dethmama Chronicles is written anonymously by a home hospice nurse who works the night shift and responds to crises and death calls. The role of the hospice nurse in this situation can change instantly several times within one visit. She is candid and entertaining in her writing about in-home experiences like being threatened with a knife by a bereaved family member, dealing with intoxicated bereaved family members (in two parts!), and a miscalculated prognosis leading to a new renter in Grandma's old room. She also peppers her posts with Fun-Filled Funereal* Facts and a recurring series of web highlights about hospice issues. There are even some cats and dogs in there if you need some non-palliative medicine material.**

DNR/DNI by Leo Levy, a pseudonym for an anonymous MICU RN who has a knack for palliative care issues. Leo writes in a longer form with stories that have many different components which are occasionally strung along several blog posts. A longer series about a patient Mrs. Hardy was particularly fascinating and I could imagine many palliative care professionals could identify with the story.

If you are interested in reading these blogs regularly consider trying an RSS reader (if you have not already.)

• Hospice Blog by Hospice Guy (July 2004!)
• Bioethics Discussion Blog by Dr. Maurice Bernstein (July 2004!)
• Pallimed by Rosielle, Sinclair, and Quinn (June 2005)
• Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog by Frances Shani Parker (January 2007)
  
• Reflections by Dr. Bruce Campbell (April 2007)
• Medical Futility by Law Professor Thaddeus Pope (July 2007)
• Hospice Foundation of America Blog edited by Krista Renenger (August 2007)
• DNR/DNI by Leo Levi (April 2008)
• Dethmama Chronicles by Dethmama (June 2008)

This list can also be found in the right hand column.

Are there other blogs our readers follow that focus on palliative medicine issues as a central theme? Are you going to start a blog?

*I was surprised to find "funereal" is an actual word. Score one for my crossword puzzles.
**Hospice Guy broke the blog to the world first, but I had followed it for a while before that.