Dear friends of life and family:
I am excited to announce the next HLI America conference, which will be held in the great state of Texas. We are proud to join Christus Santa Rosa Health System and Assumption Seminary to present "Human Dignity at the End of Life," to be held in San Antonio on March 23-24, 2012.
We chose the timely topic of "end of life" issues because it is becoming clear that many in the health care profession are being pushed to accept euthanasia and physician assisted suicide for patients who do not appear to have ahead of them what some would call a useful and productive life. By in large, our society is becoming more and more amenable to euthanasia, physician assisted suicide, and even organ donation before a patient has died. In such a deteriorating culture, it is becoming increasingly difficult for physicians, nurses, chaplains and family members to make sound decisions for those they love and serve.
Two years ago, at the urging of Archbishop Jose Gomez, Chris Stravitsch (who is now an HLI America Fellow), Rev. Jaime Robledo and I founded a program named "Converging Roads," with the primary goal of educating health care professionals in Catholic health care ethics. Our desire was to form physicians, nurses, chaplains and all who work in the health care field so that they might be equipped with the tools necessary to provide care that is both medically and morally excellent.
The first six Converging Roads conferences were local and directed toward the Catholic community in San Antonio, Texas. They were highly successful and a source of joy and authentic community, centered around a shared conviction that good physicians can be, or perhaps need to be, faithful physicians.
While registration is limited to 100 people for the "Human Dignity at the End of Life" conference in San Antonio, those who are able to attend will enjoy an excellent program for health care professionals and other interested parties to learn about the challenges encountered in end of life care. For more information see our "Save the Date" flyer by clicking here.
Continuing Medical Education credit and Continuing Education Units will be available, and we are waiting for Continuing Nursing Education credit to be approved before we formally launch registration. However, if you would like to be contacted directly when registration becomes available you can enter your email address here and you will be notified when registration opens.
Recently I was reminded of why such events are so important, as I had the privilege to speak to pro-life medical student associations at two prestigious medical schools in Texas. One group asked me to address the conscience rights of physicians and medical students because pro-life students often feel the pressure to act against their religious and moral convictions. The other group invited me to speak about the ethics of stem cell research and the exciting advances made in the field of adult stem cell research. I thoroughly enjoyed my visits to both schools, but I after each talk I was also concerned. I asked both groups of students if they were required to take at least one course in ethics. The sad answer was "no." They also shared another common experience, the constant push by professors to devalue human life. I can't say that I was shocked by this, but it is very disappointing nonetheless.
This common experience of students and physicians is a compelling argument for why this conference and others that will follow are so important. Medical professionals need and desire strong ethical formation, and families must be able to choose medical care from physicians and nurses who share their ethical convictions.
While the primary target audience of this conference is those directly involved in the medical professions, all interested parties are welcome and encouraged to attend. If you are able to attend, you will be able to hear such great speakers as Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller, Janet Smith, Joseph Capizzi, Grattan Brown, and John Travaline and many more
Please help us by spreading the word, especially by encouraging medical professionals who might enjoy and benefit from this conference to sign up. We would be grateful also if you would pray for the success of our conference and for all medical professionals whose ability to maintain strong ethical standards in their practices is under attack by the culture of death.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Arland K. Nichols
National Director, HLI America
