2nd Kōkua Mau eNewsletter
February
 2015


  

We hope you can join us for the many interesting events in February. We added two more events and listed all by date. 

Mon. 2/9 Palliative Salon

Please join us for the next Palliative Salon with the topic: Existential/Spiritual and Ethical/Moral Issues in Palliative Care

Mon. February 9th, 2015
5:30-7:30pm
Bodhi Tree Meditation Center ((Nu'uanu)
654-A N.Judd St, Honolulu - Directions

All Welcome. Free event with free parking - We request small donation to the meditation center to help cover their expenses. Potluck - informal/pupus.  
 
Note from hosts: Please do not park beyond the monkeypod tree or up the driveway.

In this Issue and from Past Newsletters:
Tue. 2/10 Planning for the future

UHELP and the Elder Law Clinic: Planning for the future. Including the new 2014 Hawaii Power of Attorney Act.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015
3:00PM
UH Law School Library
Afternoon Tea Reception

Free event * RSVP by February 9th at 956-6544 or by email: [email protected]

Parking available $5 in UH parking structure

 

Tue. 2/10 Geriatrics at the Cross Roads

Tue. February 10
12:30-1:30pm

Castle Medical Center CME 2015
Basement Auditorium
640 Ulukahiki St
Kailua, HI 96734
No RSVP Required

Pat Borman, MD, Director, Geriatrics and Palliative Care
Hawaii Center for Healthy Aging, Memory and Brain Health
Hawaii Pacific Neuroscience

Objectives:
  • Dispel common myths about palliative care by sharing the WHO definition of palliative care
  • Provide new communication tool for conveying difficult prognoses
  • Understand improved patient and hospital outcomes with palliative care
All physicians and healthcare providers (pharmacists, nurses, dietitians, palliative care specialists, and all patient care staff) are welcome.

Thur. 2/12 Webinar: Community Partners Working Together to Optimize Hospice Use

Thur. Feb. 12, 2015
10 a.m. HST

Learn from a Minnesota Community-Based Initiative. Webinar Description: Stratis Health, part of the Lake Superior Quality Innovation Network, led a one-year CMS special innovation project to help eligible patients receive hospice care sooner, and to increase appropriate referrals to and utilization of hospice care in Minnesota through the identification of barriers to access.

A summary of the community-based project and a review of the patient and provider resources that were developed will be the focus of this presentation. Practical strategies to promote conversations about expectations and goals of care will be offered. Additional tips for conducting these important conversations will also be a focus of this session. Hear from one of the communities about how they are working together with their community partners to improve end-of-life care for the people in their community.

Webinar Objectives:
  • Identify myths regarding hospice services
  • Describe a community-based approach to improve the appropriate use of hospice care
  • Identify strategies to promote the "goals of care" discussions when there is a serious illness
Speakers:
  • Janelle Shearer, BSN, MA, CPHQ, Program Manager, Stratis Health
  • Terri Anderson, Home Care/ Hospice Manager, Glacial Ridge Home Care & Hospice
  • Mary Peterson, Director of Community Relations, Knute Nelson Hospice
  • Sue Quist, Hospice and Palliative Care Coordinator, Hospice of Douglas County
To Participate
  1. Go to: https://qualitynet.webex.com
  2. Locate the event you wish to join, click "Join Now" (located to the right of the event title)
  3. Enter your name and email address as prompted
  4. Enter the password: Hospice
  5. Dial in to the teleconference: 1-800-896-0862. The access code is 38758639
Register for Feb. 18 & 19, 2015 Virtual Palliative Care Conference

Learn How to Begin or Enhance a Community-Based Palliative Care Program.

Wed. Feb. 18 and Thur. Feb 19
7:30 am to 12:45 PM
Location: HMSA

We are hosting our second virtual palliative care conference 'Creating the Future of Palliative Care". Hosted by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). We meet at HMSA at 7:30 am HST (12:30 EST). We watch the live stream together. Seating is limited, sign up today.

A discounted registration fee of $40 per day ($65 both days) is offered to all Kōkua Mau members.

Non members pay $60 per day ($100 for both days).  

 

Wed. 2/25 The Conversation: Advance Health Care Planning

In Hawai'i, there are significant opportunities to better honor people's preferences for care, and we have a unique opportunity to make that happen.

Wed. February 25, 2015
5 - 7:30 pm
4:30 p.m. Registration
UH Mānoa Campus, Campus Center Ballroom
  • Informing and Honoring Patient Choices - Dr. Angelo Volandes, MD, MPH, Harvard Medical School
  • Best Care Possible - Dr. Rae Seitz, MD, HMSA Senior Medical Director
  • Panel Discussion: "Real Life Conversations"
Pupu Reception. No admission cost. RSVP by February 15 online.

This event is open to UH Mānoa students (nursing, social work, public health, medicine, law, etc.), UH Mānoa Nursing alumni, and members of the healthcare community. More

Parking after 4 p.m. on upper UH Mānoa campus is a flat fee of $6.

Persons with disability-related access needs are invited to contact Carlyn Okatomi, Event Coordinator, at [email protected] or (808) 956-0896 by February 18, 2015.

Sponsored by HMSA, UH Mānoa Nursing, and UH Mānoa Nursing Alumni Association.

 

Thur. 2/26 Kōkua Mau Monthly Meeting

The February Kōkua Mau Meeting (2/26) will be at HMSA and not at St. Francis, only for this one time to meet Dr. Angelo Volandes.

Thur. Feb. 26
3-5 PM
HMSA

He will give us an update on the ACP decision videos, especially the videos filmed in Hawaii with a local focus and presenters.  He will also  talk about his latest book: "The Conversation: A Revolutionary Plan for End-of-life Care", just released by Bloomsbury Press. We are happy to welcome Dr. Volandes back to our Kōkua Mau Meeting.

Join us for other updates and please let Jeannette know if you have items for the agenda. 

Parking details and room number in the next reminder. There will be real coffee and refreshments as well.

Save the date: Sat. 3/28 POLST Training

POLST Training for APRNs and Physicians.

Sat. March 28, 2015
12:30-4:30pm.
(Registration and lunch beginning at 11:30am)

Kōkua Mau, Hawaii Hospice and Palliative Care Organization invites you to a 4 hour training for providers who are actually completing the POLST.
 
This interactive session will be a combination of lecture, video, case study and role play.  The faculty are experts from our Hawaii community, all with direct experience of discussing and completing POLST.
 
Full details and registration materials to follow.

2015 Membership Drive

Please renew your Kōkua Mau Membership. Yes, membership is tax-deductible for 2015.  

Membership and donations are an essential part of keeping Kōkua Mau fiscally sustainable. Individual Membership starts at $40. We especially encourage organizational membership by community leaders that support our mission. Please contact Jeannette for details.
How do I join?
 
Please download our membership form and put it with a check in the good old postal mail.

Online: chose your membership level and click the Donate Now button on the right hand side of the webpage. Please put 'membership' in the 'Designation (Optional)' field, click 'add to giving cart' and follow the subsequent steps. We know, the free version of network for good does not look exciting but it is free. Thank you!
 
Benefits of Joining Kōkua Mau?

Kōkua Mau, as a local non-profit, community-benefit organization is fueled by the passion of dedicated volunteers with a lean budget and every penny spent on making our work possible. (We are not a state agency!) 

Expanding networking and education for professionals. 
Kōkua Mau continues to provide professionals an opportunity for education and networking through:
  • Kōkua Mau e-newsletter providing updates on local and national events, resources and research
  • Kōkua Mau website is well visited and constantly updated
  • Monthly Kokua Mau meetings, which usually include a speaker, local updates and networking opportunities
  • Palliative Pupus - our cutting-edge, clinical case discussion
  • Palliative Care Salon - a chance to talk and reflect with colleagues
For over 15 years, Kōkua Mau has been a voice for outstanding hospice and palliative care and services in Hawai'i, providing high-quality information, trainings and ever growing networking opportunities.
 
Please contact Jeannette with any questions.

From past eNewsletters

Books and News
 
New ACP Videos Released: Palliative Care & Advance Directive

ACP decisions has released several new video resources including:

"Palliative Care: An Introduction" introduces patients and families to palliative care.

"Healthy Adults Video" Less than half of American adults have an advance directive.  As a result, many families are unaware of their loved one's health care wishes and preferences during a medical crisis. ACP Decisions has created a video support tool to help healthy adults learn  more about advance care planning.

You can read more about these short videos at acpdecisions.org or our website and contact Robert Eubanks at HMSA if you are interested in getting the videos for your facility.  If you are already using the videos, you will see these listed in the menu.

The new book by Dr. Angelo Volandes

Congratulations to Dr. Volandes!

The book, The Conversation: A Revolutionary Plan for End-of-life Care, by Angelo Volandes is being released this week by Bloomsbury Press.  The book is a part memoir and part guide about how American medicine fails patients with serious illness and offers a better approach to improve how Americans live as well as possible for as long as possible.  You can order the book on Amazon and have it signed at the Kokua Mau meeting in February. 

Dr. Volandes is also the driving force behind the ACP videos and many of you might have met him during his visits to Hawaii.

"Just Forget About It" by Mary Jo Bennett

Congratulation to Kokua Mau's own Mary Jo Bennett. Her article "Just Forget About It" was just published in the New Age Journal.

 

Best wishes,

Jeannette Koijane
Executive Director
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