

Musings on Mortality: Good dying time results in good death
The very first module for my medical humanities course is called "Good Death: Oxymoron or Possibility?" A good death implies a good dying...


Musings on Mortality: Combat stress by embracing whatever brings joy
There is a term used in the field of thanatology called "mortality salience." It comes out of a theory called "Terror Management Theory"...


Musings on Mortality: Being open about death helps everyone
When death is in the house you feel the impermanence of life. When you feel the impermanence of life, you feel truth. When death is in...


Musings on Mortality: Current events can escalate death phobia
It starts with the denial of death. We are pretty sure that we won't die anytime soon so we don't give it much thought. Why obsess over...


Musings on Mortality: Maybe if we celebrated death we wouldn't fear it
Mexicans really know how to have a good time when it comes to death. Their Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, celebrated on Nov. 1...


Musings on Mortality: How 'death phobia' contributes to xenophobia
In this column, I write about the relationship between an ever-increasing xenophobia, fear of the "other," and human violence as...


Musings on Mortality: Patient-centered care feeds death phobia
IIan Morrison, Ph.D., starts a piece that he has written for the online newsletter Hospitals & Health Network (March 3, 2015) as follows:...