Compassion & Choices advocates and staff are participating in conferences, events and virtual webinars to share the organization’s mission with healthcare professionals and the public. These events are invaluable opportunities to encourage professionals in the end-of-life care world to participate in patient-centered care and advocate for the full range of end-of-life options for their patients. 

The City of Hope End-of-Life Symposium is an annual event focused on bringing together experts in end-of-life care to share their experience, skills and resources. We are proud to sponsor the event and lead two sessions: an interdisciplinary panel on navigating a request for medical aid in dying in a healthcare setting and an interactive workshop using role-play to show the evolving care needs of a man with dementia. 

Each local, state and national event that we participate in — from sponsoring, attending, presenting or tabling — raises the visibility of end-of-life options as a critical part of end of life care. We advocate for improving the end-of-life care experience of millions of people living in America in countless venues across the country by engaging with the healthcare professionals who are responsible for that care. 

An Ever-Growing Partnership With the American Society on Aging

The On Aging conference, held by the American Society on Aging (ASA), is attended by thousands  of people every year. This year, in San Francisco, Compassion & Choices was selected to present multiple sessions during the conference — including sessions on end-of-life doulas, dementia and a panel on end-of-life issues. ASA also awarded Brandi Alexander, 

Compassion & Choices chief engagement officer, with the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award for her steadfast commitment to the diversity and inclusion efforts in her 20 years at the organization. Compassion & Choices is also partnering with the American Society on Aging on a four-part webinar series featuring our staff and advocates. The series will cover dementia, end-of-life options, addressing inequities in end-of-life care, goals of care conversations and emergency room visits at the end of life. We are proud to work together on Essential Conversations, a program designed to inspire conversation about end-of-life planning and expand use of our Dementia Values & Priorities Tool®. From creating innovative collaborations, to sharing resources and information with professionals and the public, this powerful partnership keeps growing.

Brandi Alexander accepting the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award at this year’s ASA’s On Aging conference.

Engaging the Asian American, Native  Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Community Through  Advocacy and the Arts

Compassion & Choices is engaging Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities across the country and with national organizations like the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS). During AAPI Heritage Month in May, Compassion & Choices chief engagement officer Brandi Alexander participated in a panel discussion about Redefining and Empowering Patients and Caregivers. In Hawai‘i, Compassion & Choices continues to innovate in end-of-life issues and the arts, participating in events like the Merrie Monarch Festival, a grand celebration to honor Hawaiian culture and traditions. Compassion & Choices outreach efforts continue to grow with the AANHPI community.

Supporters with Merrie Monarch Float

The 2024 Allyne Hammer Excellence in Advocacy Award

Volunteers are the foundation of the end-of-life options movement. The Allyne Hammer Award for Excellence in Advocacy was created in 2023 to acknowledge the legacy of advocate, storyteller and LGBTQ+ elder, Allyne Hammer. This year, Compassion & Choices recognized Deb Robertson for her dedication to legislative organizing in Illinois for medical aid in dying, serving on the Compassion & Choices LGBTQ+ Leadership Council and counseling other terminally ill individuals. Throughout her career, Deb has also provided drug counseling and supporting LGBTQ+ homeless youth.

Deb Robertson

Partnering with Leading Latino  Organizations to Address Health Disparities 

Compassion & Choices has partnered with the LatinX Task Force, an organization dedicated to addressing health disparities and improving access to health information in the Latinx community. In November, the task force launched a groundbreaking three-part educational series called LUCHAR (Leading and Uniting Comunidades through Health and Awareness Resources), aimed at identifying and highlighting crucial health priorities, challenges and solutions within the Latinx community. Maria Otero, the Compassion & Choices director of priority populations, is a member of the LatinX Task Force advisory board and advocated strongly to incorporate end-of-life healthcare planning as a crucial sub-pillar in the LUCHAR initiative.

First-Ever National LGBTQ+ End-of-Life Guide

Compassion & Choices has joined with SAGE, the world’s largest and oldest organization dedicated to LGBTQ+ elders, to collaborate on a national LGBTQ+ advance care planning toolkit. This comprehensive toolkit empowers LGBTQ+ people on how to navigate challenges in the legal or healthcare systems by offering a step-by-step guide to help think and talk about their end-of-life healthcare decisions. It also includes information on hospice services, funeral planning, health proxies and more. Compassion & Choices and SAGE promoted the guide on social media and hosted a webinar for National Healthcare Decisions Day in April to spread awareness and move towards a future where LGBTQ+ people fully receive the care they deserve. 

The toolkit is available for free at lgbtagingcenter.org

A Documentary on Medical Aid-in-Dying Advocacy Changes the Tide

“Take Me Out Feet First,” a documentary series directed by Serene Meshel-Dillman, focuses on individuals facing terminal illnesses and their personal stories advocating for medical aid in dying. Meshel-Dillman was at her mother’s side as she navigated the process of medical aid in dying when the idea to create the series was formed. “Witnessing firsthand how medical aid in dying offered her dignified solace from her debilitating terminal diagnosis made me realize how urgently the process must be legalized for those suffering in states without access.” The docu-series is now available for streaming on Amazon Prime, offering a glimpse into the intersection of choice and compassion at life’s end.

Featured end-of-life advocates include (clockwise) Isa Mendez with husband Peter; Andrea Mimi Ankerholz; film director Serene Meshel-Dillman and Ralph McFadden with partner Keo.

Changing the End-of-Life Care Conversation Through Stories

Storytelling is a crucial aspect of changing the conversation about death and dying in our communities. In recent months, members of the Compassion & Choices African American Leadership Council  — which was founded in 2018 to bring experts from different fields together to inform Compassion & Choices’ outreach to Black communities — have shared their stories across various platforms. Dr.  E. Faye Williams, CEO and president of the Dick Gregory Society, shared how important end-of-life conversations have been in her life, from her mother to comedian and civil rights leader Dick Gregory. Joèl Maldonado, a Compassion & Choices board member, facilitated a Gullah Geechee Cultural Immersion Excursion in Beaufort, South Carolina to share grief and end-of-life traditions in the African American community.

Dr. E. Faye Williams speaking at the Journey Home Summit: A Comprehensive Discussion of the Power of Planning held by the Compassion & Choices African American Leadership Council.

Building Community and Faith-Based  Conversation

Last year, Compassion & Choices initiated conversations and presentations with congregations, large and small, about end-of-life care and options. In Cookeville, Tennessee, we brought together four congregations of different denominations to discuss this important topic. Ric Finch, member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Cookeville, said, “In order to get the kind of death you want, you better get to work on planning it well in advance, otherwise it likely won’t happen the way you’d like. Many events like this one need to be held across the country so that the message gets out to a wider audience.”

 Email [email protected] to host an event in your area.

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