I wrote this article not only to honor my father, but also to explore and share the feelings of loneliness and isolation that I, and many others, have experienced after a loved one dies. I’m honored to share this article with the Caruso Society.
I am a proud graduate of Maricopa Medical Center and think, talk and share stories about Dr. Caruso often.
Dan knew I was very interested in palliative care and once told me that if I was going to do this type of work, I needed to believe in miracles.
Ironically, he told me this while standing outside of Room 4 of the Arizona Burn Center, which many folks know is a room where many, many patients have died.
I think of his advice often and it reminds me that while I always want to be honest with patients and families about prognosis and possible outcomes, I also always need to maintain hope and leave room for miracles to happen because once in a while they really do!
Follow Melissa Red Hoffman, MD, ND / Surgical Palliative Care on her Twitter page @surgpallcare and her website at www.surgicalpalliativecare.com.
Read the full article [The Sound of Silence—When There Are No Words [JAMA – July 9, 2019 Volume 322 Number 2] here:
Melissa Red Hoffman, MD, ND
Surgical Palliative Care
We are a diverse group of surgeons dedicated to integrating palliative medicine into the care of surgical and trauma patients. #HPM