Confronting End Of Life Issues:
The Rabbi’s Role
While over 80% of people would prefer to die at home, more than 60% die in acute care hospitals and more than 20% die in nursing homes. (Source: Stanford School of Medicine)
How do we deal with the inevitable halakhic questions that arise in these situations?
This course will provide a broader understanding of the issues surrounding “end of life” care and the rabbi’s role during this process. Participants will gain unique medical and halachic perspective relating to the commonly performed procedures, treatment of cancer and hospice patients, living wills and medical proxies, and pastoral care of the family involved in a medical crisis.
Sample Topics:
- Inside the hospital, ER and ICU: Top issues, equipment, terms and staff
- Pastoral care at the end-of-life
- Terminal illness and end-of-life
- Palliative care, hospice, DNR and withholding treatment
- Confronting pediatric end-of-life
- Mediating end-of-life decisions within families and with hospitals
- Dementia
- Bikur cholim
- Living wills, halachic wills and medical proxies
- Brain death and organ donation
9 / 1 HOUR SESSIONS
Course Coordinator:
Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai MD
Sephardic Rabbi at Boca Raton Synagogue and Author of “Defining the Moment: Understanding Brain Death in Halacha”