THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 15, 1996 TAG: 9604150076
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY JEFF HAMPTON, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
Albemarle Hospice and The Albemarle School of Nursing will host a live teleconference Wednesday on dealing with grief after a sudden death.
Cokie Roberts of ABC News will moderate the third annual teleconference, to be shown live at 2,000 sites nationwide. A panel of bereavement experts will discuss methods of dealing with grief, and viewers will be able to call in with questions.
The teleconference will be held from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at College of The Albemarle's lecture room in Building B.
``Anyone in the community is invited,'' said Beth Ehrhardt, coordinator of the Albemarle Hospice Program. ``It is especially helpful to anyone who has had a sudden loss, funeral home staff, ministers, teachers - anyone in the caring field, really.''
Joe Griffith, funeral director for Twiford Funeral Home, attended last year's teleconference.
``I think it was wonderful, and certainly it was timely information,'' he said. Griffith has attended several grief seminars over the years but said he gained new information at the teleconference. ``It definitely helped broaden the horizons.''
The Albemarle Hospice coordinates a team of nurses, social workers, chaplains and volunteers to assist the terminally ill and their families. It falls under the auspices of the district Health Department.
Ehrhardt said dealing with sudden loss may seem outside the realm of hospice care, but hospices are often called upon to help people through grief. For instance, a hospice worked with survivors after the federal building in Oklahoma City was bombed last April, she said.
As a part of its services, Albemarle Hospice sends letters to grieving families to educate and console them during the bereavement process, Ehrhardt said. One letter, for example, attempts to help families on the first anniversary of the death, a particularly hard time.
The hospice also offers counseling and organizes support groups.
Participating experts include Kenneth J. Doka, Ph.D., Lutheran minister and professor of gerontology at the College of the New Rochelle; Charles Figley, Ph.D., professor of social work at Florida State University; Janie Harris Lord, director of victim programs for Mothers Against Drunk Driving; Patricia Murphy, Ph.D., clinical specialist in ethics and bereavement at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center; and Therese Rand, Ph.D., clinical psychologist.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Association of Death Education, the American Medical Association and the American Nurses Association are sponsoring the teleconference. ILLUSTRATION: PLUG IN
Local residents are invited to participate in a live national
teleconference Wednesday on dealing with grief after a sudden death.
Cokie Roberts of ABC News will moderate the conference, which will
have a link to College of The Albemarle's lecture room in Building B
from 1 to 4:30 p.m. For more information, call Beth Ehrhardt at
338-4393.
by CNB