Several months ago we asked readers of this Newsletter to submit short stories pertaining to palliative care and their experiences working in the field. We thank all of you who submitted stories. So many people provided a stark insight into the needs and many times harsh situations in the developing world.
The Winner: The Compromise
She wants to die on the banks of the holy river, but there is no morphine available there. She seems unrousable, but what if she wakes during the journey in severe pain. She's only 20 years old. She deserves a pain-free death, but also a spiritually meaningful one. She does get both, but it is a delicate balance.
Jenika Graze
Hospice Nepal
Kathmandu , Nepal
www.hospicenepal.org.np
The winner will receive the following:
1. A copy of the book Palliative Medicine, by Dr. Roger Woodruff
2. The IAHPC Publication: Palliative Care in the Developing World: Principles and Practice
3. A free institutional membership for your palliative care program. You will also receive an institutional certificate in the mail acknowledging the efforts that the organization is doing to improve palliative care in Nepal.
The recipient writes on hearing of her selection.
Dear Liliana,
Thank you so much. I am really thrilled to have won, especially as I wrote about a girl whose journey had quite an impact on me. Also, I have wanted Dr Woodruff's book for awhile, but being a volunteer means that finances are limited. The IAHPC Publication sounds like it will be very appropriate for my work here in Nepal.
Thank you.
Jenika Graze
The First Runner Up is: Home based care?
Flies circle like lazy vultures parting the air saturated with the smell of cervical cancer. Too weak to sit up, she reached out and grasped my hand. 33 degrees outside, it felt like 40 under the low tin roof.
"Hospital?" I suggested.
"No, people die there."
Six pairs of weary eyes watch my every move.
David Cameron
Sungardens Hospice, Pretoria , South Africa
This contestant receives the IAHPC Publication: Palliative Care in the Developing World: Principles and Practice
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