The staff at Steere House nursing home in Rhode Island adopted a cute little kitten with attitude. He loved to stretch out in sunlight and chase his tail - and consented to a cuddle when it suited him. Oscar was an ordinary cat or so it seemed. It wasn't long before he created a stir. It seems Oscar possessed an extraordinary gift: he instinctively knew when the end of life was near. This is the story of Oscar his patients caregivers and one stubborn...

Medicine has triumphed in modern times, transforming birth, injury, and infectious disease from harrowing to manageable. But in the inevitable condition of aging and death, the goals of medicine seem too frequently to run counter to the interest of the human spirit. Nursing homes, preoccupied with safety, pin patients into railed beds and wheelchairs. Hospitals isolate the dying, checking for vital signs long after the goals of cure have become moot....

"People often do not avail themselves of hospice care available to patients and families dealing with terminal illness, because they don't understand what it entails. Many wait until their last few days to request this extraordinary comfort care instead of using the full six months available to them through Medicare and other insurance options. Demystifying Hospice describes, through stories, good news about end-of-life issues. Written from the perspective...

Bill Moyers examines the movement in America to improve care for the dying. Each program looks at different aspects of death and care for the terminally ill, with shared experiences of the dying, their families and professional caregivers.

"There's a quiet revolution happening in the way we die. More than 1.5 million Americans a year die in hospice care-nearly 44 percent of all deaths-and a vast industry has sprung up to meet the growing demand. Once viewed as a New Age indulgence, hospice is now a $14 billion business and one of the most successful segments in health care. Changing the Way We Die, by award-winning journalists Fran Smith and Sheila Himmel, is the first book to take...