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2018 Annual Symposium

October 12, 2018 @ 8:30 am - 3:30 pm

Dr. Ira Byock

2018 Annual Symposium
Abundant Aging through the End of Life

More than 200 people attended the third annual Symposium of the Ruth Frost Parker Center for Abundant Aging on Oct. 12 in Columbus. There, they heard from Dr. Ira Byock, a leading palliative care physician, author and public advocate for improving care through the end of life.

The afternoon panel consisted of David T. Ball, Dr. Asma Mobin-Uddin, Rabbi Wendy Unger and Lama Kathy Wesley, who shared interfaith perspectives on end-of-life care. The panelists represented the Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Buddhist faiths, respectively.

In response to the question, “What was the most valuable information you learned today?” one respondent said,

“Dying can be about living.”

Another attendee said,

“The stories that were shared by all speakers were very interesting and eye opening — loved that the interfaith perspective was added by the panelists. Great program!”

Yet another attendee added,

“I will finish advance directives and talk with loved ones about our wishes at the end of life.”

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Keynote Speaker

Dr. Ira ByockDr. Ira Byock

Next Avenue 2015 
Top Influencer on Aging

Ira Byock, MD, FAAHPM is a leading palliative care physician, author and public advocate for improving care through the end of life.

He is founder and chief medical officer of the Institute for Human Caring of Providence Health and Services based in Torrance, California. The institute advances efforts to measure, monitor and improve person-centered care system-wide and supports culturally diverse communities in expanding models of caring.

Dr. Byock is professor emeritus of medicine and community & family medicine (active) at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth.

Dr. Byock has been involved in hospice and palliative care since 1978, during his residency. At that time, he helped found a hospice home care program for the indigent population served by the university hospital and county clinics of Fresno, California. He is a past president (1997) of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

Dr. Byock has authored numerous rticles on the ethics and practice of care. His research has led to conceptual frameworks for the lived experience of advanced illness, subjective quality of life measures and simple, effective life-completion counseling. His leadership in development of groundbreaking prototypes for concurrent care of people through the end of life has been foundational to advancing patient-centered care.

Byock’s first book, Dying Well (1997), has become a standard in the field of hospice and palliative care. The Four Things That Matter Most (2004), is used as a counseling tool widely by palliative care and hospice programs, as well as within pastoral care. His most recent book, The Best Care Possible (March 2012) tackles the crisis that surrounds serious illness and dying in America and his quest to transform care through the end of life. It has been praised by the Wall Street Journal, the Economist and other major publications, and won the Annual Books for a Better Life Award in the category of Wellness.


Panel of Experts

Rev. David T. Ball, JD, PhD, partner, Rosenberg & Ball Co., LPA

Rabbi Wendy Ungar, MaHL, BCC, ACP, advanced chaplain practitioner, palliative care team, Riverside Methodist Hospital

Lama Kathy Wesley, resident teacher, Columbus Karma Thegsum Chöling Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Center

Asma Mobin-Uddin, lead physician, Clinical Bioethics Consultation Service, The Ohio State University Center for Bioethics

The Best Care Possible
A Physician’s Quest to Transform Care Through the End of Life

Nature of Suffering
The Nature of Suffering and the Nature of Opportunity at the End of Life

Developmental Landmarks
Developmental Landmarks and Taskwork for the End of Life

New York Times Article
At the End of Life, What Would Doctors Do?