The Final Act of Living, Barbara Karnes, RN

The Final Act of Living: Reflections of a Long-Time Hospice Nurse is an end of life book, a resource that reads like a novel, yet has the content of a textbook. Barbara wrote this book following years of not only being at the bedside of hundreds of persons at their moment of death but with them as their hospice nurse in the months before their actual death. From the stories and experiences she shares you will see the unfolding of a process, a dying process, vs. death just happening. By being at the bedside during a time in our culture when a person dying was usually in the hospital, in a private room and very much alone, Barbara brings to the forefront of our consciousness the dynamics of dying from disease and old age.  The Final Act of Living is used as a resource on end of life issues, a training handbook for hospice volunteers, a reference book for lay ministers, social workers, counselors, nurses, and chaplains.