Free Screening of ‘Being Mortal’ explores end-of-life care
The University of Maine Center on Aging, in partnership with St. Joseph Healthcare and the Eastern Area Agency on Aging, will hold a free, community screening of the documentary “Being Mortal” at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6 at the Dyke Center for Family Business at Husson University.
After the screening, audience members are invited to participate in a guided conversation on how to take real steps to identify and communicate wishes about end-of-life goals and preferences.
“Being Mortal” explores the hopes of patients and families facing terminal illness. The film investigates the practice of caring for the dying and explores the relationships between patients and their doctors.
It follows a surgeon, Dr. Atul Gawande, as he shares stories from the people and families he encounters. When Dr. Gawande’s own father gets cancer, his search for answers about how best to care for the dying becomes a personal quest.
The film sheds light on how a medical system focused on a cure often leaves out the sensitive conversations that need to happen so a patient’s true wishes can be known and honored at the end.
“Being Mortal” underscores the importance of people planning ahead and talking and sharing with family members about end-of-life decisions.
The film is adapted from Dr. Gawande’s 2014 best-selling book of the same name.
The free screening is made possible by a grant from The John and Wauna Harman Foundation in partnership with the Hospice Foundation of America.
To register, call Eastern Area Agency on Aging at 941.2865. For more information, contact Jennifer Crittenden at 262.7923, jennifer.crittenden@maine.edu.