Presented by Hospice Foundation of America’s Annual Living With Grief Program
Grand Rapids, Michigan, April 24, 2014 – Hospice of Michigan will host a video webcast of “Helping Adolescents Cope with Loss” for health professionals in the Grand Rapids area on Friday, June 6.
Presented by the Hospice Foundation of America, or HFA, this annual Living With Grief Program provides distance-learning opportunities to healthcare and hospice workers, educators, social workers, counselors, clergy, funeral directors and other professionals who assist adolescents coping with grief.
The morning conference, which runs from 8:30-11:30 a.m., will feature a panel discussion led by Frank Sesno, director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University.
The program is designed to help professionals:
- Identify the three developmental issues encountered in adolescence
- Indicate the ways death, grief and loss of a loved one can complicate adolescent development
- Understand the ways that the developmental issues of adolescence can both complicate and facilitate the ability of the adolescent to cope with life-threatening illness
- Identify issues that should be addressed in providing care for adolescents as well as their peers and siblings in coping with life-threatening illness
- Discuss the ways that adolescents experience grief and cope with loss
- Offer strategies schools and other professionals may help adolescents cope with loss
- Describe the ways that sudden and traumatic deaths complicate the grieving process
- Provide strategies and processes for schools and other organizations to respond to a tragedy or traumatic loss such as an accident, suicide or violent event
- Discuss the value and approaches of intervention strategies with grieving adolescents, such as peer support groups, bibliotherapy, individual counseling and expressive therapies
The information provided by the expert panel will be useful to nurses, social workers, counselors, nursing home administrators, case managers, funeral directors, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, caregivers, and those working in palliative and hospice care, long-term care, or home care at all levels of professions – entry level, intermediate or advanced. This program provides an opportunity to share and exchange ideas and obtain continuing education, or CE, credits.
The event will be held on June 6 at Hospice of Michigan’s Ada office at 989 Spaulding SE. The webcast will begin at 8:30 a.m. and a local panel discussion will be held at 11 a.m.
This program is valid for three hours of CE credit. Cost is $25 per person.
To register or for more information, contact our Grief Support team at 616.356.5258 or by email at dkrajews@www.hom.org.
Each year the HFA presents its nationally recognized distance-learning program to more than 125,000 people in 2,000 communities. For more than a decade, HFA’s educational events have been instrumental in educating healthcare professionals and families on issues affecting end-of- life care.
About Hospice of Michigan
A nationally recognized leader in end-of-life care, Hospice of Michigan is the original – and largest – hospice in the state of Michigan. The non-profit organization cares for more than 1,400 patients each day in 56 counties, raising more than $4 million each year to cover the cost of care for the uninsured and underinsured. HOM offers innovative programs to enhance the quality of care for people at the end of life, education programs for physicians and healthcare professionals, caregiver education materials, cultural diversity programs for end-of-life care, and research and education programs at the HOM Institute. For more information, call HOM’s Telesupport Center at 888.247.5701 or go to www.hom.org.