As if their schedules werent packed enough, University of Miami pre-med students Emily Chinyere Anozie, Sumeet Thareja and Rishi Panchal recently volunteered their time to care for patients of Douglas Gardens Hospice. All three are grateful for the specialized training and extraordinary insight they received from their involvement with the hospice, which provides compassionate end-of-life care to Miami-Dade County residents who have a life-limiting illness.
Sumeet Thareja, Emily Chinyere Anozie and Rishi Panchal on the Douglas Gardens campus.
“This volunteer work is preparing me for big decisions I will face as a doctor,” said Rishi Panchal, whose father is a physician. “In terminal cases, you have to know when its time to stop treating people and let them live out their days with as much peace and comfort as is possible.” Sumeet Thareja agreed, saying, “Im learning what an important role hospice plays in the overall healthcare spectrum. After seeing first-hand the level of services this place provides to its clients, I wont hesitate to recommend hospice care to a patient if its appropriate.”
Jody Gross, MSN, OCN, executive director of Douglas Gardens Hospice, believes that having medical students experience end-of-life issues is crucial to the future doctors. “Physicians spend many years being taught how to save lives, so its critical to their patients that they learn that referring someone to hospice is not viewed as a failure on their part,” she said. “Our goal is to ensure pain-free days and avoid unnecessary treatments.”
The students said the experience was invaluable and will help them in their careers. As Emily Anozie noted, “For me, working at Douglas Gardens Hospice is truly a sensitizing experience which I will always remember. Allowing me to get to know these patients at the end of their lives is a gift that will stay with me forever and make me a better physician.”
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