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INFORMATION ON ORGANIZATIONS IN THE FIELD OF DEATH AND DYING
Alcor Life Extension Foundation
The Alcor Life Extension Foundation (ALEF) is a
nonprofit corporation that offers interested people
the option of being cryonically suspended after
their death. Cryonics is the process of preserving
clinically dead people at very low temperatures,
maintained in liquid nitrogen, in hopes of
returning them to life and health when medical science
has become sophisticated enough to do so. Starting in the latter part of the twentieth century there
has been a trend toward neural (head only)
preservation with the expectation that it will eventually
be possible to reconstitute the whole body. The
ALEF believes that researchers will someday find a
way to halt and even reverse the aging process,
with the opportunity for people to extend their
lives for centuries.
The ALEF was founded in 1972 and had forty
members in suspension by 2001. The ALEF
publishes Cryonics, a quarterly magazine that deals
with the topic of life extension, as well as such
booklets as Cryonics and Christianity, addressing
the religious concerns of Christians who may wish
to become members.
Alcor maintains a number of full-time salaried
employees and also relies on many volunteers. The
organization states that the majority of the money
it receives from its members is spent on clinical
procedures, administrative overhead, research, and
the Patient Care Fund. The fund is designed for
maintaining and eventually restoring people who
are in suspension. The cost of cryonic suspension
at Alcor ranges from $50,000 to $120,000.
The Alcor Life Extension Foundation is
headquartered at 7895 E. Acoma Drive, Suite 110,
Scottsdale, AZ 85260-6916. They can be reached by
phone at 877-GO-ALCOR or by e-mail at info@
alcor.org. Additional information can be obtained
through the ALEF web site: www.alcor.org.
American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
The American Academy of Hospice and Palliative
Medicine (AAHPM) is an organization whose
members are physicians committed to the role of
hospice and palliative care in medical practice,
education, and research. In particular, they seek to firmly
establish hospice and palliative care as a formal
role of medical doctors.
The AAHPM states its mission as achieving
excellence in palliative medicine, preventing and
relieving suffering among patients and families,
providing education, establishing clinical practice
standards, fostering research, facilitating
professional development, and advocating for public policy.
The AAHPM was originally organized as the
Academy of Hospice Physicians in 1988. Although
a number of organizations exist for those interested
in issues of hospice, the AAHPM asserts that it is
the only organization in the United States for
physicians dedicated to the advancement of hospice/
palliative medicine in practice, research, and
education. The academy expresses its intention to
begin an organized discipline devoted to the
specialties of palliative care and the management of
terminal illness. The academy states its belief that
the role of the physician includes helping even
those patients who cannot be cured.
The academy conducts continuing medical
education courses for members and provides peer
support services to hospice and palliative care
physicians. It also encourages accreditation of
physician training programs in hospice and
palliative care. The AAHPM works to educate the public
regarding the rights of the dying and other issues
affecting hospice and palliative medicine.
The American Academy of Hospice and
Palliative Medicine is headquartered at 4700 W. Lake
Avenue, Glenview, IL 60025-1485. They can be
reached by phone at 847-375-4712 or by e-mail
at aahpm@aahpm.org. Additional information can
be obtained through the AAHPM web site: www.aahpm.org.
American Association of Suicidology
The American Association of Suicidology (AAS)
brings together individuals and groups who are
interested in advancing the study of suicide
prevention and life-threatening behavior. Its members
include psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers,
nurses, health educators, physicians, directors of
suicide prevention centers, clergy, and others from
various disciplines.
The AAS was founded in 1968 and has five
regional groups and is affiliated with the
International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP).
The AAS holds an annual meeting each spring.
The AAS works to recognize and encourage
suicidology, which is the study of suicide, suicide
prevention, and related aspects of self-destruction.
The AAS promotes education, disseminates
information through programs and publications, and
cooperates with other organizations involved in
suicidology.
The AAS has several publications that come
with its membership, the most significant being
Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, the official
journal of the American Association of Suicidology.
For three decades, the journal has provided a
forum for professionals throughout the world to
examine approaches to life-threatening behaviors.
The journal investigates the complexity of
suicidality and its treatment, addressing biological,
statistical, psychological, and sociological approaches.
The journal provides readers with the latest
research on such topics as predictors and risk factors
for suicidal behaviors. It also reviews important
new resources in the field, including professional
books, assessment scales, and international
conference reports. Issues of the journal can be
viewed on the Guilford Publications web site at
www.guilford.com.
The American Association of Suicidology is
headquartered at 4201 Connecticut Avenue NW,
Suite 408, Washington, DC 20008. They can be
reached by phone at 202-237-2280 or by fax at 202-237-2282. Additional information can be obtained
at the AAS web site: www.suicidology.org
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a voluntary
health organization dedicated to controlling and
eliminating cancer. The ACS seeks to prevent cancer
and save lives through programs of research,
education, patient service, advocacy, and rehabilitation.
The American Cancer Society was founded in
1913, and for more than eighty years has been the
leader in cancer research. The ACS supports
research through grants to individuals and
institutions. The organization also supports service and
rehabilitation programs for cancer patients and
their families. It develops and directs educational
programs for the public and for doctors and other
health professionals. One of the primary goals of
ACS is to provide the most accurate and current
information on cancer. ACS promotes policies, laws,
and regulations that benefit patients and families
affected by cancer. The ACS publishes several
annual reports and bimonthly journals that provide
medical professionals with important research and
statistical information on cancer.
A national board of 124 volunteer directors
governs the ACS. Half the directors are laypersons
and half are doctors and scientists. Most society
funds are raised in its annual community crusade
during April, designated as Cancer Control Month
by the U.S. Congress in 1938.
The ACS is headquartered at 1599 Clifton Road
NE, Atlanta, GA 30329. It has seventeen chartered
divisions throughout the country and over 3,400
local offices. Local programs established by the
ACS serve to educate the public about cancer
prevention, early detection, treatment, survival, and
quality of life. Additional information can be
obtained through the ACS web site: www.cancer.org.
American Cryonics Society
The American Cryonics Society (ACS) is an
organization for people who are interested in extending
life through cryonics. Cryonics refers to the
freezing of clinically dead humans in anticipation of
reviving the person when the necessary scientific
and medical technology becomes available. A
person held in such a state is said to be in cryonic
suspension. Maintenance of the body involves placing
and keeping it in a container filled with liquid
nitrogen. As a membership-only organization, the
American Cryonics Society contracts with other
organizations for the suspension and caretaking of
suspended bodies.
The cryonics movement began in 1962,
receiving a boost with the publication of The
Prospect of Immortality by Robert C. W. Ettinger in
1964. The book explores the arguments and ideas
that have given rise to cryonics and is a founding
book of the movement. The ACS was founded in
1969 as the Bay Area Cryonics Society, changing
its name in 1985.
The organization helps interested people
arrange for their own cryonic suspension. It
promotes and sponsors research, education, and
information about cryonic suspension, life extension
sciences, and low-temperature medicine. It
conducts programs to freeze tissue samples from
endangered species for possible future cloning.
The ACS publishes American Cryonics, a
semiannual journal that gives readers a summary
of research and national news regarding cryonics.
They also publish the monthly Immortalist,
featuring articles on cryonics, health, aging research,
and science.
The American Cryonics Society can be
contacted at P.O. Box 1509, Cupertino, CA 95015. They
can be reached by phone at 800-523-2001 or by
e-mail at cryonics@jps.net.
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association (AHA) is a
national voluntary health agency organized to fight
diseases of the heart and blood vessels. The AHA
seeks to reduce premature death and disability
from cardiovascular disease and stroke by
sponsoring research, community services, and professional
and public education on heart disease. The
association coordinates efforts of the medical profession
in its fight against heart and circulatory disease.
The AHA was founded in 1924 and has fifty-six
state offices and nearly 2,000 local offices. It has
about 26,000 active members, including several
thousand physicians and scientists. About 2.5
million volunteers also participate in the work of the
association. The American Stroke Association is a
division of the AHA.
The association gains all of its financial support
from the general public through contributions,
mainly from its Heart Campaign held each
February and its Heart Fund.
The AHA publishes current research in the
monthly medical journal Arteriosclerosis,
Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. The AHA also
publishes several other publications regarding cardiac
medicine.
The American Heart Association is
headquartered at 7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75231-4596. People can contact and make donations
to the AHA by calling 800-AHA-USA1, or
visiting them on the web at www.pfk.com/aha/DonateOnlineGeneral.asp. Additional information
can be obtained through the AHA web site:
www.americanheart.org.
American Hospice Foundation
The American Hospice Foundation (AHF) is a
charitable nonprofit corporation that seeks to aid
those who face life-limiting illness and significant
loss. The foundation advances the hospice concept
of care; that is, a family centered concept of health
care for people dying of an incurable illness. The
hospice concept aims at easing the physical and
psychological pain of the patient's illness so that
the person can appreciate his or her remaining life.
The hospice team includes the patient and his or
her family, as well as physicians, nurses, social
workers, members of the clergy, and volunteers.
Hospice services may include nursing care and
pain control, meal preparation, laundry, or
shopping. This care may be provided at home, in a
separate hospice medical center, or in a hospice unit
of a hospital.
The AHF seeks to ensure the availability of
hospice care for many who might otherwise not
have such care available. The foundation aids
programs that serve the needs of the terminally ill by
supporting a range of community bereavement
programs. The AHF promotes hospice benefits in
health insurance and managed care programs, and
fosters research on consumer needs. The
American Hospice Foundation creates educational
campaigns to aid bereaved employees and coworkers.
It offers training and materials on grieving children
for teachers and school counselors, and
educational programs for clergy.
The American Hospice Foundation can be
contacted at 2120 L Street NW, Suite 200,
Washington, DC 20037. They can be reached by phone
at 202-223-0204, by fax at 202-223-0208, or by
e-mail at ahf@msn.com. Additional information
can be obtained through the AHF web site: www.americanhospice.org.
American Lung Association
The American Lung Association (ALA) works to
prevent lung disease and promote lung health. The
association works to combat causes of lung
problems, including smoking and environmental lung
hazards such as air pollution.
The ALA was founded in 1904 to combat
tuberculosis, and has become the oldest nationwide
voluntary public health agency in the United States.
The ALA has about 130 state and local affiliates.
The ALA provides public health education
programs and materials on diseases such as lung
cancer, emphysema, asthma, pneumonia, influenza,
tuberculosis, and lung disorders in infants. It
supports medical research and awards grants to
medical professionals who specialize in lung health.
The work of the association is funded by public-contributions, especially by its annual Christmas
Seal Campaign. Additional funding comes from
gifts and grants from corporations, foundations,
and government agencies.
The ALA works to offer a variety of smoking
control and prevention programs, some targeting
adults and others intended for schools. ALA offers
its Freedom from Smoking program, considered a
top smoking cessation program.
In its work to fight lung disease caused by air
pollution, the ALA led the fight for clean air, and
became a key source of information on the
hazards of air pollution. The association seeks to
influence the laws and regulations related to lung
health. It helped pass the federal Clean Air Act, as
well as the law prohibiting smoking on airplanes.
Headquarters of the American Lung Associationare in New York City. The ALA informs and
educates the public about lung disease through
its web site, public service announcements, news
releases, and conferences. To reach a local
American Lung Association office, call 800-LUNG-USA
(800-586-4872). Additional information can be --obtained through the ALA web site: www.lungusa.org.
Americans for Better Care of the Dying
Americans for Better Care of the Dying (ABCD) is
a nonprofit organization committed to ensuring
that all Americans receive adequate care at the end
of life. The ABCD seeks to instill comfort, dignity,
and meaning to the dying process for family
members as well as their loved ones.
The organization was founded in 1997. Its
goals are to reform current practices of caring for
the dying, explore new systems for delivering care
to the dying, and to shape public policy relating to
end-of-life issues. It also seeks to improve
standards of practice among professionals and greater
reimbursement for end-of-life care.
ABCD aims to improve pain management,
increase financial reimbursement, enhance care,
support family caregivers, and change public policy. It
helps organizations and individuals improve
community care systems and assists health care
organizations in implementing improvements. ABCD
helps build networks of interested parties so they
can share their expertise.
Americans for Better Care of the Dying is
headquartered at 4125 Albemarle Street NW, Suite 210,
Washington, DC 20016. They can be reached by
phone at 202-895-9485, by fax at 202-895-9484, or
by e-mail at info@abcd-caring.org. Additional
information can be obtained through the ABCD web
site: www.abcd-caring.org.
American SIDS Institute
The American Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Institute (ASIDSI), often called the American SIDS
Institute, is a nonprofit organization of health care
professionals, researchers, and laypeople
concerned about sudden infant death syndrome
(SIDS), the unexplained death of an apparently
healthy baby under one year of age. Members
include families who have lost babies to SIDS. The
precise cause of these deaths is not known, and
ASIDSI supports efforts to identify the cause and
cure of SIDS.
The American SIDS Institute was founded in
1983. The institute seeks to advance infant health
through clinical services, education, research, and
support for SIDS families. Its sponsorship of
research programs includes conducting research on
siblings of babies lost to SIDS who are at higher
risk. The ASIDSI conducts seminars for health care
professionals and laypeople and maintains a
speakers' bureau.
Because there is no known cure for SIDS, the
institute works to inform the public of risk factors
for SIDS in order to reduce those risks. Known risk
factors include premature birth to extremely young
mothers, lack of prenatal care, and exposure of the
mother to cigarette smoke, alcohol, or narcotics
during pregnancy. Poverty, poorly ventilated
rooms, soft mattresses, and too much clothing or
covers at bedtime also increase a baby's risk for
SIDS. By promoting such information, the ASIDSI
helped reduce the numbers of SIDS deaths in the
early 1990s.
The American SIDS Institute's headquarters are
at 2480 Windy Hill Road, Suite 380, Marietta, GA
30067. They can be reached by phone at 800-232-SIDS or by e-mail at prevent@sids.org. Additional
information can be obtained through the ASIDSI
web site: www.sids.org.
Association for Death Education and Counseling
The Association for Death Education and
Counseling (ADEC) is a multidisciplinary professional
nonprofit organization dedicated to creating high
standards in death education, bereavement
counseling, and care of the dying. ADEC's primary goal
is to enhance the ability of professionals and
laypeople to be better able to meet the needs of
those with whom they work in death education
and grief counseling. ADEC works to promote and
share research, theories, and practice in dying,
death, and bereavement. The association aims to
provide an arena for professionals of various
disciplines to advance awareness of issues in dying,
death, and bereavement.
The ADEC began in 1976, with the Forum for
Death Education and Counseling, organized by a
group of educators and clinicians. The
organization grew into the Association for Death Education
and Counseling. ADEC is the oldest
interdisciplinary organization in the field of dying, death, and
bereavement. Members of ADEC include
educators, counselors, nurses, physicians, mental health
professionals, clergy, funeral directors, and social
workers.
The ADEC hosts an annual conference and
provides professional resources for its members. It
also publishes a member directory, a newsletter,
and an annual book from its conference.
The Association for Death Education and
Counseling is located at 342 North Main Street,
West Hartford, CT 06117-2507. They can be
reached by phone at 860-586-7503 or by fax at 860-586-7550. Additional information can be obtained
by e-mail at info@adec.org or through the ADEC
web site: www.adec.org.
Befrienders International
Befrienders International is a charitable volunteer
organization that works to prevent suicide with its
network of 357 centers worldwide. These centers,
run by trained volunteers, offer a free service of
nonjudgmental and completely confidential
telephone, mail, e-mail, or face-to-face contact.
Befrienders try to prevent suicide by providing a
listening ear for people who are lonely, despairing,
or suicidal. They try not to judge suffering people
or tell them what to do, but just listen. They
believe that listening saves lives, and by listening to a
suicidal person a befriender tries to help the
person address a particular problem or pain.
Befrienders International was founded in 1974.
By 2001 it had centers in forty-one countries. The
organization supports and advises new and
existing centers and offers its expertise and experience
to other agencies. Befrienders International also
initiates programs aimed at suicide prevention,
including Reaching Young Europe, a program that
teaches coping skills to young children.
Befrienders International is headquartered at
26-27 Market Place, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey
KT1 1JH, England. They can be reached by e-mail
at admin@befrienders.org. Additional information
can be obtained through the Befrienders web site:
www.befrienders.org. Through their web site,
Befrienders International provides a comprehensive
directory of emotional first aid help lines.
Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
(BCPGV) is dedicated to reducing gun violence in
the United States. The BCPGV began in 1974 when
Dr. Mark Borinsky, a victim of gun violence,
founded the National Council to Control Handguns
(NCCH). In 1980 the NCCH was renamed Handgun
Control, Inc. (HCI). After Jim Brady, the press
secretary to President Ronald Reagan, was shot during
an assassination attempt on the president in 1981,
Brady's wife Sarah joined the cause. In 1983 the
Center to Prevent Handgun Violence (CPHV) was
founded as a sister organization to HCI.
The organization won several legislative
battles, one of which led to the U.S. Congress banning
bullets that can puncture police officers'
bulletproof vests. Congress also banned handguns that
cannot be detected by airport X-ray machines.
In 1993 the Brady Bill, requiring a five-day
waiting period and background checks on handgun
purchases, was signed into law. President Bill
Clinton signed into law the Violent Crime and Control
Act of 1994, which includes the ban on manufacture
and importation of military-style assault weapons.
Also in 1994, the CPHV helped launch Steps to
Prevent (STOP) Firearm Injury, training doctors to
counsel patients and their families about the risks
of guns in the home. In 1996 CPHV launched
Project Lifeline, a national network of health
professional committed to public education on gun
violence prevention.
In 2001 the CPHV launched a nationwide
initiative to encourage state officials to use their
consumer protection authority to regulate gun design.
Also that year the CPHV was renamed the Brady
Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence can
be contacted at 1225 Eye Street NW, Suite 1100,
Washington, DC 20005. They can be reached by
phone at 202-289-7319 or by fax at 202-408-1851.
Additional information can be obtained through
the CPHV web site: www.gunlawsuits.org.
Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention
The Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention
(CASP) aims to help reduce the suicide rate and
minimize the harmful consequences of suicidal
behavior. CASP's main purpose and function is to
facilitate, advocate, support, and advise. CASP does
not provide formal therapeutic services, and it is
not a crisis center.
In 1985 a group of professionals incorporated
CASP. They responded to a need they saw for
greater information and resources among
communities in order to reduce the suicide rate.
CASP promotes broad-based information
sharing on suicide intervention and research. It holds
annual national conferences, publishes a
newsletter, and creates service and research networks and
directories. CASP advocates for governmental
policy development pertinent to suicide prevention.
The association also develops guidelines for use in
other institutions, such as schools.
CASP seeks to develop excellence in research
and service in Canada by giving annual national
awards for outstanding contributions in research
and service. The association also develops and
administers standards for crisis and research centers
and develops funds for specific projects.
CASP News, the organization's newsletter, is
published in English and French three times per
year.
The CASP office can be contacted at Canadian
Association for Suicide Prevention, The Support
Network, #301, 11456 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton,
Alberta T5K 0M1. They can be reached by phone
at 780-482-0198; by fax at 780-488-1495; or by
e-mail at casp@suicideprevention.ca. Additional
information can be obtained through the CASP web
site: www.thesupportnetwork.com/CASP.
Canadian Palliative Care Association
The Canadian Palliative Care Association (CPCA) is
a nonprofit organization whose membership is
made up of individuals and hospice/palliative care
programs from all ten Canadian provinces and
three territories. The CPCA is the leading national
association in hospice/palliative care in Canada.
The association states its goal as leading the
pursuit of "excellence in care for people approaching
death so that the burdens of suffering, loneliness,
and grief are lessened."
The association describes palliative care as
involving four main components: pain management;
symptom management; social, psychological,
emotional, and spiritual support; and caregiver support.
The organization defines palliative care as aimed at
relieving suffering and improving the quality of life
for those who are living with or dying from
advanced illness or who are bereaved.
CPCA declares "to achieve its mission through:
collaboration and representation; increased
awareness, knowledge and skills related to hospice
palliative care of the public, health care providers and
volunteers; development of national standards of
practice for hospice palliative care in Canada;
support of research on hospice palliative care;
advocacy for improved hospice palliative care policy,
resource allocation and supports for caregivers."
CPCA funding comes from membership fees,
corporate and individual donations, project grants,
and contributions from charitable organizations
and foundations. The CPCA publishes many fact
sheets with titles such as "Palliative Care: A Fact
Sheet for Seniors."
The volunteer board of directors of CPCA
includes representatives from each of the provincial
associations and five elected members at large.
Various committees carry out related activities.
Questions regarding CPCA can be e-mailed to
info@cpca.net. Additional information can be
obtained through the CPCA web site: www.cpca.net.
Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation
The Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation
(CCCF) seeks to educate, support, and advocate for
families of children with cancer, survivors of
childhood cancer, and the professionals who work with
them. CCCF services include an information
clearinghouse, resource database, peer support groups
for parents of children with cancer, and a long-term
survivor network. A group of concerned parents of
children with cancer founded CCCF in 1970.
Using volunteers who are lawyers, doctors,
teachers, and insurance experts, Candlelighters'
Ombudsman Program helps families and survivors
of childhood cancer who experience difficulties in
areas of insurance appeals, medical opinions,
employment discrimination, and disability rights.
A program called Candlelighters Survivors of
Childhood Cancer Program aims to provide a
forum for young adult survivors of childhood
cancer in the United States. These people can educate
themselves on issues related to being a survivor
and can interact with other survivors.
Candlelighters works to influence public
policy by maintaining a presence in Washington, D.C.,
working in particular to support federal funding of
cancer research as well as legislation and benefits
that impact children with cancer. Candlelighters
collaborates with many other organizations to
create a stronger force for children with cancer.
CCCF's publications include Candlelighters
Quarterly, a publication for parents and
professionals, as well as a number of pamphlets aimed at
helping children with cancer understand their
condition and treatment. Parents may call the CCCF
national office at 1-800-366-CCCF (2223) for
referral to the local group nearest them. Local
Candlelighters groups provide much of the organization's
direct services to families, such as support groups
and parent hospital visitation programs.
Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation
is headquartered at 3910 Warner Street,
Kensington, MD 20895. They can be reached by e-mail at
info@candlelighters.org. Additional information
can be obtained through the CCCF web site:
www.candlelighters.org.
CDC National Prevention Information Network
The CDC National Prevention Information
Network (NPIN) provides information about HIV/
AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome), sexually transmitted
diseases (STDs), and tuberculosis (TB) to people
and organizations working in prevention, health
care, research, and support services. All of NPIN's
services are designed to facilitate this sharing of
information.
The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), an agency of the Public Health Service,
which is a division of the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. The CDC works to
protect public health by administering national
programs for the prevention and control of disease
and disability. The agency provides health
information and statistics and conducts research to find
the sources of epidemics. Established in 1946,
CDC's headquarters and many of its laboratories
are in Atlanta, Georgia.
NPIN staff serve a network of people who
work in international, national, state, and local
settings. All NPIN services are designed for reference,
referral, and informational purposes only. NPIN
does not provide medical advice or medical care.
Among the many topics on which the NPIN
provides information is how HIV/AIDS, STDs, and
TB affect groups such as African Americans,
American Indians, Asians, Hispanics, incarcerated
populations, people with disabilities, pregnant women,
women, and young people. The agency provides
information on statistics, trends, substance abuse,
testing, counseling, travel, immigration, treatment,
and support as they relate to these diseases.
The CDC National Prevention Information
Network can be reached at P.O. Box 6003, Rockville,
MD 20849-6003. They can be contacted by phone
at 800-458-5231 or by e-mail at info@cdcnpin.org.
Additional information can be obtained through
the CDC NPIN web site: www.cdcnpin.org.
Center for Death Education and Bioethics
The Center for Death Education and Bioethics
(CDEB) is a resource center that collects and
archives academic materials concerned with the
issue of death, dying, and bereavement in
contemporary society.
The center was founded in 1969 as the Center
for Death Education and Research at the
University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. It was formed with
the purpose of serving as a repository for materials
concerning mortality. It was also intended as a
center for the dissemination of literature and
information to the academic and professional communities
as well as to the public. The Center for Death
Education later became affiliated with the Sociology/
Archaeology Department of the University of
Wisconsin in La Crosse.
The CDEB retains a large collection of journals,
books, and articles concerned with death, dying,
bereavement, terminal illness, hospice care, and
related topics. Administrators of the center encourage
users to visit the center and take advantage of its
resources for their academic projects or personal
interests. The center is open for certain hours of
the week and by appointment at other times.
The CDEB sponsors Illness, Crisis, and Loss, a
quarterly peer-reviewed journal published by Sage
Publications. CDEB also sells brochures on grief
and loss.
The Center for Death Education and Bioethics
is located at 435NH, 1725 State Street, University of
Wisconsin, La Crosse, WI 54601-3742. They can be
reached by phone at 608-785-6784 or by e-mail at
cdeb@uwlax.edu. Additional information can be
obtained through the CDEB web site: www.uwlax.edu/sociology/cde&b/.
Children's Hospice International
Children's Hospice International (CHI) provides
resources and referrals to children with
lifethreatening conditions and their families. The goal
of CHI is to improve quality of life for the dying
child and the ongoing, strengthened life of the
family. It advocates on behalf of these children and
families, helps to establish children's hospice
programs, and provides education and training for
health care providers.
Children's Hospice International was founded
in 1983 as a nonprofit organization to provide a
network of support and care for children with
lifethreatening conditions and their families. Very few
hospice programs would accept children before
the CHI worked to change that. Today almost all
hospice programs in the United States are willing
to consider accepting a child as a patient.
The hospice approach for children is a team
effort that provides medical, psychological, social,
and spiritual expertise. CHI recognizes the right
and need for children and their families to choose
health care and support whether in their own
home, hospital, or hospice care facility. The
organization works closely with medical
professionals as a bank, providing technical assistance,
research, and education.
The Children's Hospice International is
headquartered at 901 N. Pitt Street, Suite 230,
Alexandria, VA 22314. They can be reached by phone at
800-24CHILD or 703-684-0330, or by e-mail at
chiorg@aol.com.
Concerns of Police Survivors
Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) is a national
nonprofit organization devoted to helping families
and other survivors deal with the impact of police
deaths. COPS acts as a support group for the
survivors of law enforcement officers who have died
suddenly and violently. Survivors include a police
officer's squad partners and other such comrades
and friends.
COPS was established in 1984 and grew to
over thirty chapters by the end of the twentieth
century. Grants from the U.S. Department of
Justice help the organization continue and support
some of its key efforts. COPS also receives funding
from a number of organizations, including police
unions, as well as from individuals.
COPS helps friends and families of slain
officers through grief counseling programs. COPS
aims to become a social network to help families
recover from the shock and emptiness of death.
Members are available to help one another in the
immediate aftermath of an officer's death as well as
for years to come.
The organization sponsors recreational camps,
retreats, and other events for family members of all
ages. Children aged six to fourteen can go to camps
with their parents, and older children can
participate in wilderness challenges designed to instill
self-confidence and independence. COPS sponsors
getaways for spouses of slain officers as well as
outings for officers' parents. Many of these events are
held at Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. The national
program raises money to provide for the camps,
and local chapters cover transportation costs.
Official programs include national peer
support, national counseling programs, national
police survivors' seminars, scholarships, trial and
parole support, and information on state death
benefits. COPS also provides programs for
agencies and raise public awareness.
The National Office of Concerns of Police
Survivors offers information and accepts donations at
P.O. Box 3199, S. Highway 5, Camdenton, MO
65020. They can be reached by phone at 573-346-4911 or by e-mail at cops@nationalcops.org.
Additional information can be obtained through the
COPS web site: www.nationalcops.org.
Council of Religious AIDS Networks
The Council of Religious AIDS Networks (CRAN)
seeks to empower and mobilize faith communities
to respond to the international HIV/AIDS (human
immunodeficiency virus/acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome) pandemic. Membership includes
local, regional, and national faith-based,
AIDSspecific ministries and organizations.
The council grew out of the AIDS National
Interfaith Network (ANIN), a private, nonprofit
organization founded in 1988. ANIN was created to
secure compassionate and nonjudgmental support,
care, and assistance for individuals with HIV and
AIDS. The organization coordinated a network of
nearly 2,000 ministries.
In 1993 representatives of ANIN met with the
National Episcopal AIDS Coalition (NEAC),
Disciples of Christ AIDS Network, Lutheran AIDS
Network, and United Methodist AIDS Network to
create a new organization. By their second meeting in
1993, the group had formally named itself the
Council of National Religious AIDS Networks, a
name that was later modified to the Council of
Religious AIDS Networks.
Members of CRAN receive a newsletter that
features information on AIDS legislation, upcoming
events, and news from AIDS ministries nationwide.
They also receive Action Alerts on time-sensitive
issues of importance to AIDS ministries. The council
hosts a web site that seeks to offer comprehensive
and reliable information on HIV/AIDS and
faithbased services, faith-based organizations, and
communities of faith.
CRAN works closely with the United States
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in
Atlanta, Georgia, and also seeks to coordinate efforts
with AIDS organizations worldwide.
For further information, contact CRAN, c/o Dr.
Jon A. Lacey, P.O. Box 4188, East Lansing, MI
48826-4188. Information can also be obtained by
e-mail at info@aidsfaith.com or through the CRAN
web site: www.aidsfaith.com.
Cremation Association of North America
The Cremation Association of North America
(CANA) seeks to raise standards and ethics for
cremation. Cremation, the practice of burning a dead
body to ashes, has become increasingly common
in the United States and Canada. Most funeral
directors can arrange a cremation, which often
includes a funeral service before or after the burning.
CANA seeks to increase public awareness and
knowledge of cremation and memorialization. Its
membership is made up of owners of cemeteries
and crematories, funeral directors, industry
suppliers, and consultants.
CANA began in 1913 as the Cremation
Association of America, changing its name in 1977. CANA
conducts research, compiles statistics, holds
certification programs, and hosts a trade show. CANA
publishes a quarterly magazine, The Cremationist.
The CANA code of cremation practice states:
"In the practice of cremation, we believe: in
dignity and respect in the care of human remains, in
compassion for the living who survive them, and
in the memorialization of the dead; that a
cremation authority should be responsible for creating
and maintaining an atmosphere of respect at all
times; that the greatest care should be taken in the
appointment of crematory staff members, any
whom must not, by conduct or demeanor, bring
the crematory or cremation into disrepute; that
cremation should be considered as preparation for
memorialization; that the dead of our human
society should be memorialized through a
commemorative means suitable to the survivors."
The Cremation Association of North America is
headquartered at 401 N. Michigan Avenue,
Chicago, IL 60611-4267. They can be reached by phone
at 312-644-6610, by fax at 312-321-4098, or by
e-mail at cana@sba.com. Additional information
can be obtained through the CANA web site:
www.cremationassociation.org.
Death Studies
Death Studies is a peer-reviewed journal that
publishes papers on research, scholarship, and clinical
work in the areas of bereavement and loss, grief
therapy, death attitudes, suicide, and death
education. Death Studies is published eight times each
year. Its readers are comprised of professionals in
universities, hospitals, hospices, and counseling
centers who are interested in the major topics in
the field of death and dying. Death Studies online
archives date back to January 1997.
Article titles published by Death Studies
include "Grief Communication, Grief Reactions and
Marital Satisfaction in Bereaved Parents"; "No-Suicide Contracts among College Students"; "
Survivors' Motives for Extravagant Funerals among the
Yorubas of Western Nigeria"; "Exploration of the
Relationship Between Physical and/or Sexual
Abuse, Attitudes about Life and Death, and Suicidal
Ideation in Young Women"; "Traumatic Stress and
Death Anxiety among Community Residents
Exposed to an Aircraft Crash"; "Firearms and Suicide:
the American Experience, 1926–1996"; " Developing Beliefs That Are Compatible with Death"; "
Israeli Children's Reactions to the Assassination of
the Prime Minister"; and "Parental Bereavement:
The Crisis of Meaning."
Death Studies is published by Taylor & Francis,
a 200-year old international academic publisher.
They have offices in London and other British
cities as well as New York City, Philadelphia,
Singapore, and Sydney. Prospective readers can visit
the Taylor & Francis web site to browse the
contents pages of Death Studies issues. Readers
within institutions that subscribe to the journal can
access the full text free of charge.
The editor in chief of Death Studies is Robert
A. Neimeyer, Department of Psychology,
University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152. Further
information can be found at www.tandf.co.uk/journals.
Dougy Center for Grieving Children
The Dougy Center for Grieving Children is a
nonprofit organization that provides families in
Portland, Oregon, and the surrounding region, support
for children, teens, and their families grieving a
death. Through their National Center for Grieving
Children & Families, they also provide support and
training locally, nationally, and internationally to
individuals and organizations seeking to assist
children and teens in grief.
In 1982 the Center became the first in the
United States to provide peer support groups for
grieving children. The Center received national and
international acclaim for pioneering a model for
assisting children, teens, and families coping with
the deaths of family members. Over 120 programs
modeled on the Center have developed
throughout the United States, Canada, Japan, England,
Jamaica, Germany, and Rwanda.
The Dougy Center provides training nationally
and internationally for companies and schools
helping grieving children and teens coping with
deaths from natural causes or from violence in a
community. The Center also trains groups in
starting children's grieving centers.
The Center publishes a guidebook series that
grew out of their experience. Topics in the series
include helping children and teens cope with
death, children and funerals, helping the grieving
student, and a guide for principals responding to
deaths in school.
The Dougy Center is privately supported and
does not charge a fee for services. The Dougy
Center can be reached at 3909 SE 52nd Ave., Portland,
OR 97286, by phone at 503-775-5683, by fax at
503-777-3097, or by e-mail at help@dougy.org.
Additional information can be obtained through the
Dougy Center web sites at www.dougy.org/about.html or www.grievingchild.org.
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is
a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping
children with HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency
virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The
foundation's focus is on continuing research,
especially on the effectiveness of drug treatments for
children and decreasing their cost.
Elizabeth Glaser was a television actress who
contracted HIV through a blood transfusion in
1981. By the time she was diagnosed, she had
already passed the virus to her daughter Ariel
through breast-feeding and to her son Jake during
pregnancy. Ariel died in 1988, and Glaser herself
died in 1994 at the age of forty-seven. She left
behind her husband, Paul Michael, a Hollywood
director and actor, and their son. Paul Michael was
the only one in the family not infected. Jake
remained HIV-positive but otherwise functioning.
After Ariel's death the Glaser couple and
several friends founded the organization to raise funds
for pediatric HIV/AIDS research. Elizabeth became
a vocal AIDS activist and a critic of what she saw as
governmental inaction toward the epidemic. Paul
Michael became chairman of the foundation board.
In its first ten years, the foundation raised $75
million for pediatric AIDS research and treatment.
The foundation supported a network of leading
research institutions with an $8 million grant. The
institutions, which included Harvard Medical School/
Children's Hospital-Boston and Stanford School of
Medicine/Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, study
treatments for serious pediatric illnesses. In
addition, five Elizabeth Glaser Scientists are named
each year by the foundation to receive up to
$682,500 in a five-year research grant. The
foundation also funds other grants and scholarships.
The foundation accepts donations by phone at
888-499-HOPE (4673) or by mail to Elizabeth
Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, 2950 31st Street,
#125, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Additional
information can be obtained through the foundation's web
site: www.pedaids.org/index.html.
European Association for Palliative Care
The European Association for Palliative Care
(EAPC) promotes palliative care in Europe and acts
as a source for professionals who work or have an
interest in this field.
From its foundation in 1988 the EAPC grew to
reach a reported membership representing over
23,000 people by 2001. The EAPC head office is
situated at the Division for Rehabilitation, Pain
Therapy and Palliative Care within the National
Cancer Institute in Milan, Italy.
The stated objectives of the EAPC include: "
Increase the awareness and promote the development
and dissemination of palliative care at scientific,
clinical and social levels; promote the
implementation of existing knowledge; train those who at any
level are involved with the care of patients with
incurable and advanced disease; promote study and
research; bring together those who study and
practice the disciplines involved in the care of patients
with advanced disease; unify national palliative care
organizations and establish an international network
for the exchange of information and expertise; and
address the ethical problems associated with the
care of terminally ill patients."
The official publication of the EAPC is the
European Journal of Palliative Care. Launched in
1994, it is published in English and French and
aimed at palliative care professionals. In addition,
the association's communication strategy includes
its web site, which it considers crucial for informing
members and sharing information among members.
The European Association for Palliative Care is
also referred to by the acronym ONLUS, based on
its foreign language title. The mailing address of the
EAPC is National Cancer Instititute of Milan, Via
Venezian 1, 20133 Milan, Italy. They can be reached
by e-mail at eapc@istitutotumori.mi.it. Additional
information can be obtained in French or English
through the EAPC web site: www.eapcnet.org.
European Journal of Palliative Care
The European Journal of Palliative Care ( EJPC) is
the official journal of the European Association for
Palliative Care (EAPC). The association promotes
palliative care in Europe and acts as a source for
people who work or have an interest in the field of
palliative care. The Journal publishes authoritative
articles covering a range of palliative care issues
and acts as a resource for palliative care
professionals throughout Europe and beyond.
The Journal is produced in English and French
editions, and is available by subscription only. The
EJPC is a review journal, therefore it does not
publish original research. Commissioned review
articles are aimed at covering all aspects of the care of
patients with incurable diseases. Contributions are
taken from members of every discipline involved
in palliative care.
The EAPC launched the EJPC as a quarterly
publication in 1994. Since 1997 it has been
published six times a year.
The Journal aims to help advance the skills
and expertise of professions that include palliative
care specialists, general practitioners, nurses,
oncologists, anesthetists, pain specialists,
geriatricians, AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency
syndrome) specialists, psychiatrists/psychologists, and
social workers.
The Journal is published by Hayward Medical
Communications, whose editorial offices are
located in London, England. Additional information can
be obtained through the Hayward web site:
www.hayward.co.uk. The mailing address of the
EAPC is National Cancer Institute of Milan, Via
Venezian 1, 20133 Milan, Italy. Additional
information can be obtained in French or English through
the EAPC web site: www.eapcnet.org.
Funeral Consumers Alliance
The Funeral Consumers Alliance (FCA) is a
nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to
educate consumers and to establish, promote, and
protect their rights in the planning and purchasing of
funeral and memorial arrangements. The FCA
monitors the funeral industry with the goal of
protecting consumer interests.
Groups called "memorial societies" existed in
the early 1900s, when people joined together to
ensure an acceptable level of standards for burial.
In 1963 several such societies formed the
Continental Association of Funeral and Memorial
Societies. After the Canadian societies dropped out,
members changed the name to the Funeral and
Memorial Societies of America in 1996. In 1999 the
organization's board voted to consolidate its
operations under the Funeral Consumers Alliance.
The FCA provides educational materials on
funeral choice to increase public awareness of
funeral options. It acts as a source of information for
media coverage of issues on dying and death. The
FCA lobbies as a consumer advocate for reforms at
the national level and lends support for needed
changes at the state or local level.
The Funeral Consumers Alliance publishes a
quarterly newsletter that covers industry trends,
legal issues, consumer information, and tips for
local groups. The Funeral Consumers Alliance is
supported by dues and donations from both local
organizations and from individuals.
The Funeral Consumers Alliance is
headquartered at P.O. Box 10, Hinesburg, VT 05461. They
can be reached by phone at 800-765-0107.
Additional information can be obtained through the
FCA web site: www.funerals.org.
Hemlock Society
The Hemlock Society is a nonprofit organization
devoted to helping people maintain choice and
dignity at the end of their life. They believe that
people suffering from irreversible illnesses must
have access to peaceful means to hasten their
death if they feel their suffering is unbearable.
According to the Hemlock Society, "The primary
means to accomplish this is with legally prescribed
medication as part of the continuum of care
between a patient and a doctor, although there are
non-medical methods that are effective."
The Hemlock Society was founded in 1980 by
Derek Humphry. It has since become the oldest
and largest right-to-die organization in the United
States with almost 25,000 members in seventy
chapters across the country.
The Hemlock Foundation funds the
educational and charitable parts of the Hemlock operation.
The Patients' Rights Organization (PRO-USA) is
Hemlock's legislative arm. Its funds go directly into
legislative efforts to change the law. Hemlock
seeks to change laws in order to protect patients
and physicians involved in hastening a death.
The society does not distribute the means to a
peaceful death, but they make available written
materials on such matters. Their publications
provide information on advance directives, pain
management, hospice care, and all options for a death
in which the patient retains choice and dignity.
Their education efforts also occur through their
web site and about 12,000 annual phone inquiries.
The Hemlock Society can be reached at P.O.
Box 101810, Denver, CO 80250-1810. Interested
people can call 800-247-7421 for the location of
local chapters or other information. The society
can be reached by e-mail at email@hemlock.org.
Additional information can be obtained through
the Hemlock Society web site: www.hemlock.org.
Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association
(HPNA) is an international professional association
with the mission of promoting excellence in
hospice and palliative nursing. Its stated purpose is to
exchange information, experiences, and ideas; to
promote understanding of the specialties of
hospice and palliative nursing; and to study and
promote hospice and palliative research.
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association
began as the Hospice Nurses Association in 1986 at
a meeting of the Southern California Hospice
Association. The organization grew after 1993 in
response to HPNA's formation of the National Board
for the Certification of Hospice Nurses to develop
a process to credential hospice nurses. The board
became a separate organization, responsible for
developing and overseeing the certification exam
for hospice and palliative nurses. The national
office of HPNA coordinates activities for the board.
The HPNA mission statement declares the
organization's role of promoting excellence in
hospice and palliative nursing, promoting the highest
professional standards of hospice and palliative
nursing, studying, researching, exchanging
information, experiences, and ideas leading to
improved nursing practice, encouraging nurses to
specialize in the practice of hospice and palliative
nursing, fostering the professional development of
nurses, and promoting recognition of hospice and
palliative care as an essential component
throughout the health care system.
HPNA publishes the quarterly journal JHPN.
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association is
located at Penn Center W. One, Suite 209,
Pittsburgh, PA 15276. They can be reached by phone at
412-787-9301 or by e-mail at hpna@hpna.org.
Additional information can be obtained through the
HPNA web site: www.hpna.org.
Hospice Association of America
The Hospice Association of America (HAA) is a
national organization representing more than 2,800
hospices and many caregivers and volunteers who
serve terminally ill patients and their families. Hospice is a family-centered concept of health care for
people dying of incurable illnesses.
The hospice concept aims at easing the physical
and psychological pain of the patient's illness so that
the person can appreciate his or her remaining life.
The hospice team includes the patient and his or her
family, as well as physicians, nurses, social workers,
members of the clergy, and volunteers. Hospice
services may include nursing care and pain control,
meal preparation, laundry, or shopping. This care
may be provided at home, in a separate hospice
medical center, or in a hospice unit of a hospital.
In 1996 the HAA's first special membership
section, the Volunteer Hospice Network (VHN),
was established to promote the growth, diversity,
and development of volunteer organizations that
serve people dealing with life-threatening illnesses
and those who are grieving.
The HAA is the largest lobbying group for
hospice in the United States, appealing to the U.S.
Congress, the regulatory agencies, other national
organizations, the courts, media, and the public.
HAA members can obtain expert advice from
the HAA's legislative, regulatory, legal, research,
and clinical specialists. A team of trained
professionals works with the membership to advocate on
behalf of hospices, caregivers, and those they serve.
HAA members receive a number of
publications produced by the HAA. These publications
include Caring, a monthly magazine covering all
aspects of the hospice and home care field, and
Homecare News, a widely circulated quarterly
newspaper that reaches the entire hospice and
home care community.
The Hospice Association of America is
headquartered at 228 Seventh Street SE, Washington,
DC 20003. They can be reached by phone at 202-546-4759. Additional information can be obtained
through the HAA web site: www.nahc.org.
Hospice Association of South Africa
The Hospice Association of South Africa (HASA) is
an international palliative care association that
coordinates the development of hospices in the South
Africa region by providing a centralized source of
information, education, and training. The HASA
represents forty-nine hospices in South Africa.
The association is among the very few care
services for the terminally ill in South Africa.
Hospices are funded mainly by private donations,
some of which have been raised through benefit
events. Only a small part of hospice income is
from the government. However, hospice service is
free and available to all, regardless of age, sex,
race, color, or creed. The Most Reverend Desmond
Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus, is patron of the
Hospice Association of South Africa.
The Hospice Association of South Africa is
headquartered at P.O. Box 38785, Pinelands 7439,
Western Cape, South Africa.
Hospice Education Institute
The Hospice Education Institute is an independent,
nonprofit organization that serves members of the
public and health care professionals with
information and education about caring for the dying and
the bereaved. The institute defines hospice as a
philosophy of caring that respects and values the
dignity and worth of each person and good
hospice care as the practical expression of that
personal and professional commitment. Hospices aim
to cherish and emphasize life by helping patients
live each day to its fullest.
Founded in 1985, the institute seeks to educate
the public about the history of hospice, which
dates back to the Middle Ages. In modern times a
resurgence of hospice care was seen in the latter
part of the 1900s. From 1974 to 1978 hospices and
palliative care units opened across North America.
In the 1980s, hospice care, usually emphasizing
home care, expanded throughout the United
States, especially after Medicare added a hospice
benefit in 1984 and after hospices began to care for
people with advanced AIDS (acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome).
From 1990 to 1999 almost 3,000 hospices and
palliative care programs served the United States
and soon there was well-established hospice and
palliative care in Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
and much of Asia and Western Europe.
The Hospice Education Institute is
headquartered at 190 Westbrook Road, Essex, CT 06426-1510. Interested parties can telephone the institute
at 800-331-1620 or 860-767-1620 to obtain
information about good hospice and palliative care, to
get referrals to hospices and palliative care
organizations in the United States, or to discuss issues
relating to caring for the dying and the bereaved.
The e-mail address of the institute is hospiceall@
aol.com. Additional information can be obtained
through the Hospice Education Institute web site:
www.hospiceworld.org.
Hospice Foundation of America
The Hospice Foundation of America (HFA) is a
nonprofit organization that promotes hospice care
and works to educate professionals and the
families they serve in issues relating to caregiving,
terminal illness, loss, and bereavement. The HFA
provides leadership in the development and
application of hospice and its philosophy of care.
Through programs of professional development,
research, public education, and information, the
HFA assists those who cope either personally or
professionally with terminal illness, death, and the
process of grief. The Hospice Foundation of
America seeks to enhance the role of hospice within the
American health care system.
Hospice Foundation, Inc. was chartered in
1982 with the purpose of providing fundraising
assistance to hospices operating in South Florida so
that they could carry on their mission of providing
compassionate care to dying patients. In 1990, with
the help of a significant gift from Hospice Care,
Inc., the foundation expanded its scope to a
national level in order to provide leadership in the
entire spectrum of end-of-life issues. The
foundation board is made up of health policy experts.
The HFA seeks to raise the visibility and credibility
of hospice and advocate for principles of hospice
that may enhance the medical system.
In 1992 the foundation opened a Washington,
D.C., office for its policy and program work, and in
1994 the board changed the name of Hospice
Foundation, Inc. to the Hospice Foundation of America.
The Foundation is supported by contributions from
individuals and corporations, grants from
foundations, and gifts from associations.
The Hospice Foundation of America is
headquartered at 2001 S. Street NW, #300, Washington,
DC 20009. They can be reached by phone at 800-854-3402 or by fax at 202-638-5312. Additional
information can be obtained through the HFA web
site: www.hospicefoundation.org.
Hospice Information
Hospice Information acts as a worldwide link and
resource for any health professional or member of
the public concerned with palliative care. The
service seeks to promote sharing of experience by
spreading current information. They also seek to
enable patients and caretakers to find and obtain
needed palliative care support. Hospice
Information estimates that there are over 6,500 hospice/
palliative care centers in about ninety countries.
The organization has links with services in over
eighty of these countries.
The Hospice Information Service began in
1977, founded by Dame Cicely Saunders at the first
teaching hospice, St. Christopher's Hospice in
London. The Service grew in response to an increasing
number of inquiries about hospice received by St.
Christopher's. The Service shortened its name to
the Hospice Information in 2002, and remained
linked to the Department of Palliative Care and
Policy, a joint venture between St. Christopher's
and King's College London.
Hospice Information publishes a quarterly
newsletter, Hospice Bulletin, which highlights the
work of international palliative care centers and
informs readers of new services, especially those in
developing countries. It publishes a "Directory of
Hospice and Palliative Care Services in the UK and
Ireland," the "Hospice Worldwide" directory, and
fact sheets with titles such as "Facts and Figures:
Latest Palliative Care Statistics" or "Building a
Hospice." The Hospice Information web site features a
listing of hospices and palliative care services
worldwide for both professionals and the public.
Hospice Information is located at St.
Christopher's Hospice, 51 Lawrie Park Road, London
SE26 6DZ and Hospice House, 34 Britannia Street,
London WC1X 9JG. Hospice Information can be
contacted by e-mail at info@hospiceinformation.
info. Additional information can be obtained
through the Hospice Information web site: www.hospiceinformation.info.
Illness, Crisis, and Loss
Illness, Crisis, and Loss is a quarterly journal based
on the stated premise that significant progress in
the fields of life-threatening illness and thanatology
will be achieved by bringing together the expertise
of many varied professionals. The journal attempts
to explore all aspects of grief, death, and loss by
publishing peer-reviewed articles, book reviews,
and essays related to these issues.
The journal is sponsored by the Center for
Death Education and Bioethics (CDEB), a resource
center that collects and archives academic
materials concerned with the issues of death, dying, and
bereavement in contemporary society. The center
was founded in 1969 as the Center for Death
Education and Research at the University of Minnesota
in Minneapolis. The center later became affiliated
with the Sociology/Archaeology Department of the
University of Wisconsin in La Crosse.
Robert Bendiksen is the editor of Illness, Crisis,
and Loss and director of the CDEB. The journal is
published by Sage Publications, headquartered in
London, England.
The range of subjects covered by the journal
includes HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency
virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome),
crisis intervention, death studies, ethical decision
making, grief work, and palliative care of the
dying. Specific sample topics include models of
grieving, religion and spirituality, grief work with
survivors of disasters, euthanasia, bioethics, and
assisted dying.
Address correspondence to Dr. Robert
Bendiksen, Editor, Illness, Crisis, and Loss, Center for
Death Education and Bioethics, Soc/Arc Dept., 435
North Hall, University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, WI
54601-3742. The center can be reached by phone
at 608-785-6781 or by e-mail at cdeb@uwlax.edu.
Additional information can be obtained through
the Sage Publications Ltd. web site: www.sagepub.co.uk.
International Association for Suicide Prevention
The International Association for Suicide
Prevention (IASP), also called the Association
Internationale pour la Prevention du Suicide (AIPS), is an
organization for individuals and agencies of various
disciplines and professions from different countries
engaged in suicide prevention and research.
The goal of the association is to provide a
common platform for the interchange of
experience, literature, and information about suicide. It is
also aimed at the wide dissemination of the
fundamentals of suicide prevention in both professional
and public circles. The IASP arranges for
specialized training of selected people in suicide
prevention. It encourages and facilitates research
programs, especially ones that can be pursued
through international cooperation.
The IASP was founded in 1960, and is financed
by membership dues, voluntary contributions, and
subsidies.
The IASP encourages the work of voluntary
organizations, such as the network of suicide
prevention telephone services. It also disseminates
information on various other forms of crisis
intervention, such as psychotherapy and drug
treatment, aimed at suicide prevention. The IASP
publishes a quarterly publication called Crisis.
World headquarters for the IASP are in Vienna,
Austria. American headquarters are located at Rush
Center for Suicide Prevention, 1725 W. Harrison
Street, Suite 955, Chicago, IL 60612. They can be
reached by phone at 312-942-7208, by fax at 312-942-2177, or by e-mail at iasp@aol.com. Additional
information can be obtained through the IASP web
site: www.who.int/ina-ngo/ngo/ngo027.htm.
International Association of Pet Cemeteries
The International Association of Pet Cemeteries
(IAPC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the
advancement of pet cemeteries everywhere. It
pursues its goal mainly through public awareness
programs.
There are more than 600 active pet cemeteries
in the United States, most of which operate in
conjunction with other pet-related business such as
boarding kennels, grooming salons, training
centers, and veterinarian hospitals. Some directors of
human cemeteries have set aside a portion of their
grounds for pet burials. Some pet cemeteries
operate on a full-time basis, specifically dedicated to
the burial or cremation of pets.
Pat Blosser founded the International
Association of Pet Cemeteries in 1971 in West Chicago.
Member pet cemeteries are expected to maintain
the highest business and ethical standards. The
IAPC operates on a budget that is supported only
by dues and other contributions from members.
The International Association of Pet Cemeteries
has no paid employees—volunteers do all of the
association's work.
Members of the International Association of
Pet Cemeteries can receive continuous education
management consultation, use of the IAPC logo,
public relations services, promotional materials,
and membership plaques. Members also receive a
subscription to News and Views. They may attend
the IAPC annual spring convention and the annual
fall seminar.
The International Association of Pet
Cemeteries can be reached at P.O. Box 163, 5055 Route 11,
Ellenburg Depot, NY 12935, by phone at 518-594-3000, or by fax at 518-594-8801. Additional
information can be obtained through the IAPC web site:
www.iaopc.com.
International Cemetery and Funeral Association
The International Cemetery and Funeral
Association (ICFA) is an international trade association
representing the cemetery, funeral, and
memorialization industry. The ICFA's stated mission is to
serve and support its members in order to help
them succeed in business.
The International Cemetery and Funeral
Association was founded in 1887 as the American
Cemetery Association, an organization of cemetery
owners and operators who wanted to provide a
means for accomplishing more together than they
could as individuals. The organization gained its
present name in 1997 when the American
Cemetery Association merged with the National
Association of Cemeteries.
In its mission statement, the ICFA includes its
commitment to prefinanced funeral and cemetery
services and to providing consumers with better
value through open competition. It states its
services to members as promoting high ethical
standards, providing products and educational
services, leading legislative, regulatory, and legal
changes, encouraging members to promote the
celebration of life, remembrance, and
memorialization, and promoting cemeteries as guardians of
a nation's heritage and as places of lasting tribute
to the memory of the dead.
The ICFA reached a membership of more than
6,000 cemeteries, funeral homes, monument
dealerships, crematories, and related businesses. The
ICFA publishes a monthly journal, International
Cemetery and Funeral Management. The ICFA
offers members representation in the governmental
arena, educational meetings, and other services
and products to meet their needs.
The International Cemetery and Funeral
Association is headquartered at 1895 Preston White
Drive, Suite 220, Reston, VA 20191. They can be
reached by phone at 800-645-7700 or by e-mail at
gen4@icfa.org. Additional information can be
obtained through the ICFA web site: www.icfa.org.
Journal of Loss and Trauma
The Journal of Loss and Trauma is published four
times per year, bringing together scholarship on
personal losses relating to family, health, and aging
issues. The journal focuses on both psychological
and physical health, as well as interpersonal losses
within the contexts of extended family,
community life, and society as a whole. In order to broaden
the reader's perspective on loss and bereavement,
and their pervasiveness in human life, the Journal
of Loss and Trauma defines loss as a major
reduction in a person's resources, whether personal,
material, or symbolic, to which the person was
emotionally attached. Types of loss covered include
death and dying, dissolution and divorce, loss of
employment, life-threatening diseases and
longterm disability, loss of possessions, homelessness,
recurring painful memories, disenfranchisement
and stigmatization, losses resulting from war and
violence, and aging.
The Journal highlights common as well as
differing impacts of major losses while revealing
commonalities of the various healing processes.
Interdisciplinary in its approach, the quarterly publishes
papers on experiments, case studies, discussions,
theoretical analyses, and essays on therapeutic
approaches. Book reviews are also regular features.
The Journal was formerly called the Journal of
Personal and Interpersonal Loss. Readers of the
journal include academics and practitioners in the
fields of psychology, counseling, thanatology,
gerontology, nursing, anthropology, family studies,
psychiatry, sociology, oral history, and
organizational management as it pertains to job loss.
The Journal is published by Taylor & Francis,
which is headquartered in London at 11 New
Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE. Additional information
can be obtained through the Taylor & Francis web
site: www.tandf.co.uk.
Journal of Near-Death Studies
The Journal of Near-Death Studies is a quarterly
publication produced by a nonprofit organization
called the International Association for Near-Death
Studies (IANDS). The Journal features scholarly
reports on near-death experiences and similar
phenomena, and is included in membership dues for
IANDS. The term near-death experience refers to
what reported by some people who come very
close to physical death or who survive a state of
clinical death. IANDS calls a near-death experience
one of the most powerful emotional and
psychological events known. The organization seeks to
provide reliable information about near-death
experiences, as well as information and support for
those who have been through it.
IANDS describes its mission as responding to
the need for information and support concerning
near-death and similar experiences, and to
encourage recognition of the experiences as genuine and
significant events. Its stated goals are to enrich
understanding of human consciousness and its
relationship to life and death. IANDS responds to
people's needs to integrate the physical, mental,
emotional, and spiritual aspects of the near-death
experience. Founded in 1981, it provides
information about near-death experiences to researchers,
academia, the health care community, and the
public, encouraging research and serving as a
networking organization for near-death experiencers,
their families, and caregivers.
IANDS hosts an annual three-day conference
for experiencers, researchers, and health care
professionals. The association coordinates
peersupport groups across the United States and
Canada to assist people who have experienced
near death and need to reintegrate into daily life.
IANDS is headquartered at P.O. Box 502, East
Windsor Hill, CT 06028. They can be reached by
phone at 860-644-5216 or by email at office@
iands.org or services@iands.org. Additional
information can be obtained through the IANDS web
site: www.iands.org.
Journal of Pain and Palliative Care in Pharmacotherapy
The Journal of Pain and Palliative Care in
Pharmacotherapy is a professional quarterly journal
that features information on end-of-life care. The
publication includes original articles, reviews,
editorials, commentaries, case reports, book and
media reviews, news, and a meeting calendar.
The Journal of Pain and Palliative Care in
Pharmacotherapy formed in 2002 from the merger
of two other journals: the Journal of
Pharmaceutical Care in Pain and Symptom Control and the
Hospice Journal. The editors created the new title
to reflect an increased focus on symptom control
in end-of-life care. The international editorial
board of the new journal includes over twenty
experts in pain and palliative care from the fields of
research, medicine, nursing, pharmacy,
psychology, bioethics, and health policy.
The Journal of Pharmaceutical Care in Pain
and Symptom Control was published quarterly
beginning in 1993. It was a refereed journal
concerned with issues of drug therapy in regard to its
effectiveness, safety, cost, availability, delivery
systems, ethics, health care policy, and other areas.
These issues were addressed in relation to
symptom control for both chronic and acute disorders.
The Hospice Journal, which began in 1985, was
the official journal of the National Hospice
Organization. It addressed physical, psychosocial, and
pastoral care of the dying.
The Journal of Pain and Palliative Care in
Pharmacotherapy is published by The Haworth
Press, 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580.
Interested parties can obtain sample copies of the
journal from that address. Single or multiple copies
of all journal articles are available from the
Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678.
The press can be reached by e-mail at getinfo@
haworthpressinc.com. Additional information about
the Journal can be obtained through the Haworth
Press web site: www.haworthpressinc.com.
Junior Chamber Family AIDS Network
The Junior Chamber Family AIDS Network was
founded by members of the Jaycees to provide
help for children and families affected by HIV/
AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome). The organization
allows young leaders to learn to mobilize
community resources, build collaborative partnerships,
provide volunteer support, and advocate for public
policy change.
In 1995 members of the U.S. Junior Chamber
of the Jaycees followed the Jaycee formula of
national leadership and local solutions to address
needs of children and families affected by
HIV/AIDS. They formed a separate nonprofit
organization called the Junior Chamber Family AIDS
Network. Funding for the network comes from
Jaycee chapters across the United States as well as
private and corporate donations. The Jaycees
stress individual development through leadership
training and civic involvement. They learn to be
leaders by working in community improvement
programs.
The network maintains collaborative
partnerships with three national organizations: Jaycees,
Mothers' Voices, and Advocates for Youth. They also
work with service providers in Missouri, Illinois,
Michigan, Colorado, Oklahoma, and California.
Network services include providing child care,
housing, case management, caregiver support,
mental health treatment, and substance abuse
treatment. Network volunteers help AIDS victims
and families by hosting events, such as purchasing
backpacks and school supplies for children,
volunteering in direct service programs, creating
residential facilities, and working to keep families
together for as long as possible.
The Family AIDS Network is headquartered at
4 W. 21st Street, Tulsa, OK 74114. They can be
reached by phone at 918-584-2481, by fax at 918-584-4422, or by e-mail at info@jcfamilyaidsnetwork.
org. Additional information can be obtained
through the Junior Chamber Family AIDS Network
web site: www.jcfamilyaidsnetwork.org.
Last Acts
Last Acts is a campaign to improve care at the end
of life. Its goal is to bring death-related issues into
the open and help individuals and organizations
pursue better ways to care for the dying. The
organization believes in palliative care, which
focuses on ways to ease pain and make life better for
people who are dying and their loved ones. Palliative care means taking care of the whole person—
body, mind, and spirit. It views death and dying as
something natural and personal. The goal of
palliative care is to provide the best quality of life
until the very end of life.
Last Acts is a national effort to raise awareness
about the need to improve care of the dying and to
share issues and ideas at the national, state, and
local levels. The honorary chair of Last Acts is the
former first lady Rosalynn Carter. Last Acts' members
comprise health care professionals, religious bodies,
advocates, parents, educators, and health care
institutions. They help partners find experts, schedule
meeting speakers, and publicize their efforts.
Last Acts task forces address family needs,
institutional change, professional education,
palliative care, financing, and the workplace. Resource
committees ensure that diversity, spirituality,
public communication, standards development, and
evaluation methods are incorporated in the work
of each task force.
Last Acts works with policymakers and the
news media to get and disseminate information
about current policy issues. Last Acts sponsors
national and regional conferences and publishes a
quarterly print newsletter and special reports. Using
electronic media, it conducts discussion groups on
death and dying issues, distributes an e-mail
newsletter, and publishes new information on its
web site: www.lastacts.org.
Leukemia and Lymphoma Society
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is a
national voluntary health agency dedicated to curing
leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, and
myeloma. The society is dedicated to improving
the quality of life of patients with these diseases
and their families.
Leukemia is a kind of cancer in which
abnormal white blood cells multiply in an uncontrolled
manner. It is a disease of the bone marrow and
other blood-forming organs. Lymphoma is
lymphatic cancer. A well-known form of lymphoma is
Hodgkin's disease, a type of cancer in which the
lymph nodes and other lymphoid tissues become
swollen. The disease can be fatal and its cause is
unknown. The most common lymphatic cancer is
non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Cases of non-Hodgkin's
lymphoma have risen steadily since the mid-1900s,
as many people with AIDS (acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome) develop this type of cancer.
Myeloma is a cancerous tumor of the bone marrow.
The society was founded as the de Villers
Foundation in 1949 by two parents who lost their only
son to leukemia and recognized the need for an
organization dedicated to finding cures for the
disease. In 2000 the society changed its name from the
Leukemia Society of America to the Leukemia and
Lymphoma Society to emphasize its commitment to
fighting all blood-related cancers. The society has
close to sixty chapters across the United States.
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can be
reached at 1311 Mamaroneck Avenue, White
Plains, NY 10605. They can be reached by phone
at 800-955-4572. Additional information can be
obtained through the Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society web site: www.leukemia.org.
Living Bank International
Living Bank International is a nonprofit
organization dedicated to the enhancement of organ and
tissue donation and transplantation. The mission of
the Living Bank is to motivate and facilitate the
commitment of enough organ and tissue donors so
that no one must die or suffer for lack of a
donation. The board and staff of the Living Bank are
dedicated to increasing the number of
registeredinformed donors.
Founded in 1971, the Living Bank is the oldest
and largest donor education organization in the
United States, and the only national one that keeps
computerized records of donor data for future
retrieval in an emergency. The Living Bank also
cooperates with and supports any group or
organization whose activities generate more committed
donors or facilitates actual donation.
There is a large donor/transplant community in
the United States consisting of organizations that
seek to educate would-be donors, issue donor
cards, and register donor information for efficient
access and referral organ procurement
organizations. The donor/transplant community also sends
surgical teams into hospitals of the donors to take
the donated organs and to transport the organs to
hospitals where the chosen recipients wait. Transplant centers are located in authorized hospitals,
where actual transplant operations take place.
Living Bank International is based in Houston,
Texas. They can be reached by phone at 800-528-2971 or by e-mail at info@livingbank.org.
Additional information can be obtained through
the Living Bank International web site: www.livingbank.org.
Make-A-Wish Foundation of America
The Make-A-Wish Foundation of America exists to
fulfill the wishes of children with life-threatening
illnesses and to create moments of hope, strength,
and joy for them. Although the foundation serves
children diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses,
many of these children survive their illnesses and
go on to adulthood.
The foundation was created in 1980 by friends
and relatives of a Phoenix, Arizona, boy named
Chris Greicius who dreamed of becoming a police
officer for a day. Officers of the Arizona highway
patrol made his wish come true. Two of the
officers, together with friends and Chris's mother,
decided to offer that joy to other children with
lifethreatening illnesses. They formed the Make-AWish Foundation and the movement grew quickly
throughout the United States and abroad. The
foundation has international affiliates in Australia,
Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark,
France, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel,
Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand,
Panama, Philippines, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.
Since 1980 Make-A-Wish volunteers have
granted more than 83,000 wishes worldwide. The
foundation is funded primarily through corporate and
private donations. Requests for wishes come from
parents or guardians, from members of the medical
community, and from children themselves.
For more information about the Make-A-Wish
Foundation, call 800-722-WISH or visit their web
site at www.wish.org. The web site provides a
great deal of information and introduces ways to
help, such as giving online, donating frequent flier
miles, or volunteering for local chapters.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation of America is
headquartered at 3550 N. Central Avenue, Suite
300, Phoenix, AZ 85012. Their e-mail address is
mawfa@wish.org and the public relations e-mail
address is comm@wish.org.
Mortality
The journal Mortality, an interdisciplinary
peerreviewed publication that focuses on the topic of
human mortality, is of interest to academics in the
fields of anthropology, art, classics, history,
literature, medicine, music, sociolegal studies, social
policy, sociology, philosophy, psychology, and
religious studies. Death studies is an interdisciplinary
medium. Mortality is also of interest to people
professionally or voluntarily engaged in the health and
caring professions, bereavement counseling, the
funeral industries, and central and local government.
Mortality was started in 1996 and became of
interest to international scholars and professional
groups. Both new and established scholars in this
field valued its interdisciplinary approach. Mortality aims to publish new material that is peer
reviewed. The journal encourages debate and offers
critiques of existing and classical work. The journal
also promotes the development of theory and
methodology. The journal seeks to develop
substantive issues and research within an
interdisciplinary context. It stimulates the growing awareness
of the relevance of human mortality in personal
and social life, in economic and institutional
activity, and in systems of belief, ethics, and values.
The journal editors pursue an international
approach that invites articles addressing all historical
periods and all subject areas.
Mortality is published by Taylor & Francis,
which is headquartered at 11 New Fetter Lane,
London EC4P 4EE. Additional information can be
obtained through the Taylor & Francis web site:
www.tandf.co.uk.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is a
nonprofit voluntary organization whose focus is to
look for effective solutions to problems of drunk
driving and underage drinking, while supporting
victims who have already experienced the pain of
these crimes.
MADD was founded in 1980 by a small group
of mothers and grew to one of the largest crime
victim organizations in the world. With over 600
chapters, MADD is one of the most widely
supported and publicly approved nonprofit
organizations in America. MADD's funding comes from
individual donors, grants, bequests, and MADD's
corporate sponsors. MADD works with
corporations to promote awareness campaigns and
programs designed to stop drinking and driving.
MADD compiles statistics and facts from a
number of reliable and credible sources, including
the National Highway and Traffic Safety
Administration. MADD also tracks laws having to do with
drunk driving and underage drinking, including
which states currently have these laws, and how
the laws vary from state to state.
Drunk driving research supports MADD's
positions on key issues surrounding drunk driving.
Many of these journals and studies have formed
the foundation for laws and policies in place today.
Since MADD's start, more than 2,300 anti–drunk
driving laws have been passed. A 1994 study found
MADD to be the most popular nonprofit cause in
the United States, well liked by 51 percent of
Americans. It ranked second among the most
strongly supported charities and third on the most
credible list.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving is
headquartered at P.O. Box 541688, Dallas, TX 75354-1688.
They can be reached by phone at 800-GET-MADD
(438-6233). Additional information can be obtained
through the MADD web site: www.madd.org.
National Association of People with AIDS
The National Association of People with AIDS
(NAPWA) advocates on behalf of all people living
with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and
AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) in
order to end the pandemic and the suffering it
creates. The association's stated goal is to educate,
inform, and empower all people living with HIV
and AIDS.
NAPWA began in 1983 with the Patient
Advisory Committee of the Second National AIDS Forum
that was held in Denver, Colorado. One act of the
committee was to adopt the term people with AIDS
instead of victim or patient, which they saw as
negative. The committee also created a set of
recommendations for a more humane response to AIDS.
The effort remained a loosely affiliated network.
NAPWA became incorporated in Washington,
D.C., in 1987. From its place in Washington, the
group sought to become an effective voice of
people with AIDS at the center of national power.
NAPWA sponsors the National Call to
Commitment Day, a grassroots action organized in
collaboration with national, regional, and local
organizations that serve the needs of people living with
HIV and AIDS. Its goal is to increase federal
funding to meet the needs of people living with and at
risk for HIV.
The National Association of People with AIDS
is headquartered at 1413 K Street NW, 7th Floor,
Washington, DC 20005. They can be reached by
phone at 202-898-0414, by fax at 202-898-0435, or
by e-mail at napwa@napwa.org. Additional
information can be obtained through the NAPWA web
site: www.napwa.org.
National Center for Victims of Crime
The National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC) is
a leading advocate for crime victims in the United
States. NCVC functions as a national resource
center that seeks justice for crime victims. It does this
by collaborating with local, state, and federal
partners, and by pushing for passage of laws and
public policies that create resources and win rights and
protections for crime victims. The NCVC provides
direct services and resources to victims, as well as
training and technical assistance to victim service
organizations, counselors, attorneys, criminal
justice agencies, and other professionals. The
National Center for Victims of Crime is a nonprofit
organization supported by members, individual
donors, corporations, foundations, and
government grants.
The center was founded in 1985 and claims to
have worked with more than 10,000 organizations
and criminal justice agencies serving millions of
crime victims by the early 2000s. The NCVC
compiles statistics on crime and victimization and
provides education through conferences, workshops,
seminars, and videocassettes. The center also helps
communities develop programs for victims of
violent crimes. Among the center's most important
services is providing crime victims and witnesses
with direct assistance, such as social service
referrals for crime victims.
The center maintains a database of over 10,000
organizations that link victims with key services,
including crisis intervention, information, help
through the criminal justice process, counseling,
support groups, and legal counsel.
The National Center for Victims of Crime is
headquartered at 2111 Wilson Boulevard, Suite
300, Arlington, VA 22201. People seeking an
organization near them or any related referral can
e-mail the service referral department at ddeskins@
ncvc.org or call 800-FYI-CALL or 800-211-7996
(tty/tdd). The center also offers referrals for crime
victims to attorneys for civil cases.
National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association
The National Funeral Directors and Morticians
Association (NFDMA) is a nonprofit membership
association of professional funeral directors and
morticians.
The NFDMA began as the Independent
National Funeral Directors Association in 1924. It was
organized by a group of licensed funeral directors
seeking to maintain high professional standards for
the benefit of the public and their own business
community. In 1926 the name was changed to the
Progressive National Funeral Directors Association.
In 1940 a merger with the National Colored
Undertakers Association became the National Negro
Funeral Directors Association. In 1957 NFDMA
adopted its present name.
The stated objectives of the association are to
foster research, conduct workshops and seminars,
investigate funeral practices, develop and maintain
standards of conduct designed to improve the
business condition of its members, and maintain
high standards of service for the benefit of the
public. The association seeks to provide a
continuing program of service and to develop and
disseminate information beneficial to members and
the public. The NFDMA promises to represent the
common professional and business interests of its
members before various federal, state, and local
legislative, administrative, and judicial bodies
throughout the United States.
The NFDMA awards an annual scholarship and
they publish a quarterly magazine, National Scope,
which is free to members.
The National Funeral Directors and Morticians
Association is headquartered at 3951 Snapfinger
Parkway, Suite 570, Omega World Center, Decatur,
GA 30035. They can be reached by phone at 800-434-0958 or by e-mail at nfdma@nfdma.com. More
information can be obtained through the NFDMA
web site: www.nfdma.com.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI) concerns itself with diseases of the heart,
blood vessels, lungs, and blood, as well as with the
blood supply in the United States. The NHLBI is
one of the thirteen institutes of the National
Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the U.S.
federal government. The NIH is part of the Public Health
Service of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services. NIH conducts a broad range of
biomedical research at its laboratories in Bethesda,
Maryland, and provides funds for the training of
research scientists. Elements of the NIH began in
1887, and it gained its present name in 1948.
The NHLBI is involved in many research
efforts, including basic research, clinical
investigations and trials, observational studies, and
demonstration and education projects. The NHLBI is
involved at the level of planning, conducting, and
supporting such research programs. NHLBI
research focuses on the causes, prevention,
diagnosis, and treatment of heart, blood vessel, lung, and
blood diseases and sleep disorders.
The NHLBI also conducts educational
activities for health professionals, with an emphasis on
prevention. The NHLBI seeks to spread
information to the public, also emphasizing prevention.
The NHLBI coordinates its activities with other
research institutes and federal health programs. It
maintains relationships with institutions and
professional associations, working with international,
national, state, and local officials as well as
voluntary agencies and organizations concerned with
the heart, blood vessels, lung, and blood; blood
resources; and sleep disorders.
People can direct health-related questions and
requests for copies of publications to the NHLBI
Information Center. They can be reached by e-mail
at NHLBIinfo@rover.nhlbi.nih.gov. Additional
information can be obtained through the NHLBI web
site: www.nhlbi.nih.gov.
National Hemophilia Foundation
The National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF) acts
as a leading resource on bleeding disorders
information, also focusing attention on keeping the
national blood supply safe. The NHF maintains that
the number of people with hemophilia in the
United States is 20,000. Hemophilia is a disease in
which the blood does not clot normally, causing its
victims, hemophiliacs, to bleed excessively if
injured. The disease is hereditary and nearly all
hemophiliacs are male. Because hemophiliacs often
need blood transfusions, they are vulnerable to any
disease that can be passed through the blood
supply, such as HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency
virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).
The National Hemophilia Foundation was
established in 1948 with the goal of generating
awareness about the disease of hemophilia and
calling for greater research. NHF works closely
with the National Institutes of Health, the Food and
Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) to advocate for such
issues as blood safety, medical insurance reform,
and continued funding for hemophilia treatment
centers and research.
The NHF also works with the CDC to spread
information and awareness about von Willebrand
disease and other female bleeding disorders. Von
Willebrand disease is a hereditary disease, similar
to hemophilia but occurring among women, in
which the skin bleeds for an abnormally long
period of time when injured.
The National Hemophilia Foundation is
headquartered at 116 W. 32nd Street, 11th Floor, New
York, NY 10001. They can be reached by phone at
800-42-HANDI or by e-mail at info@hemophilia.org.
Additional information can be obtained through the
NHF web site: www.hemophilia.org.
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization
The National Hospice and Palliative Care
Organization (NHPCO) is committed to improving endoflife care. The organization seeks to expand access
to hospice care with the goal of enhancing quality
of life for dying people in America, as well as for
their loved ones.
Hospice is a family centered concept of health
care for people dying of an incurable illness. The
hospice concept aims at easing the physical and
psychological pain of the patient's illness, so that
the person can appreciate his or her remaining life.
The hospice team includes the patient and his or
her family, as well as physicians, nurses, social
workers, members of the clergy, and volunteers.
Hospice services may include nursing care and
pain control, meal preparation, laundry, or
shopping. This care may be provided at home, in a
separate hospice medical center, or in a hospice unit
of a hospital.
In 1990 the World Health Organization defined
palliative care, stating that it addresses not only
physical pain, but emotional, social, and spiritual
pain to achieve the best possible quality of life for
patients and their families. Many hospice care
programs have added palliative care to their names to
reflect the greater range of care and services they
provide.
The National Hospice and Palliative Care
Organization was founded in 1978 as the National
Hospice Organization and changed its name in
2000. The organization offers support for the
terminally ill and their families and develops public
and professional educational programs and
materials to increase understanding of hospice and
palliative care.
The National Hospice and Palliative Care
Organization is headquartered at 1700 Diagonal
Road, Suite 300, Alexandria, VA 22314. They can
be reached by phone at 703-837-1500 or by e-mail
at info@nhpco.org. Additional information can be
obtained through the NHPCO web site: www.nhpco.org.
National Institute for Jewish Hospice
The National Institute for Jewish Hospice (NIJH)
serves the needs of Jewish people who are
terminally ill. The institute does this by providing
free telephone counseling, making referrals, and
training professionals in the needs of the
terminally ill. The institute reaches out to families,
businesses, and organizations concerned about
seriously and terminally ill Jewish people.
NIJH was founded in 1985 to help alleviate
suffering in terminal illness, death, and bereavement
among Jewish people. Rabbi Maurice Lamm, a
professor at Yeshiva University in New York City, is
the founder and president of the National Institute
for Jewish Hospice.
The institute serves as a resource center for
terminal patients and their families, mainly providing
information on traditional Jewish views on death,
dying, and managing the loss of a loved one. The
NIJH offers guidance and training to patients and
interested hospice personnel, health care
professionals, clergy, and family members who work
with terminally ill Jewish people.
The NIJH provides materials to communities
interested in setting up Jewish hospice care
programs. The NIJH promotes its "Jewish Living Will
and Durable Power of Attorney" document as
covering the entire spectrum of Jewish thought
regarding legal and medical ethics and offers it to
anyone who wants a copy.
In addition to the Jewish living will, the NIJH
publishes booklets and tapes that include: Caring
for the Jewish Terminally Ill, For Families of the
Jewish Terminally Ill, Hemlock Is Poison for Society,
How to Console, Introduction to Jewish Hospice,
The Jewish Orphaned Adult, Realities of the Dying,
Self-Healing and Hospice Care, The Spiritual
Component Cannot Be Ignored, Strategies for Jewish
Care, and The Undying Hope.
The National Institute for Jewish Hospice is
headquartered at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 444
S. San Vicente Boulevard, Suite 601, Los Angeles,
CA 90048. They can be reached by phone at 213-HOSPICE or 800-446-4448.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) states that its
mission is to conduct and support basic and clinical
research on some of the most serious public health
diseases. The institute supports much of the
clinical research on the diseases of internal medicine as
well as many basic science disciplines.
The NIDDK is one of the thirteen institutes of
the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency
of the U.S. federal government. The NIH is part of
the Public Health Service of the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. The NIH conducts a
broad range of biomedical research at its
laboratories in Bethesda, Maryland, and provides funds for
the training of research scientists.
The diseases that the NIDDK concerns itself
with are metabolic diseases such as diabetes,
endocrine disorders, mineral metabolism, digestive
diseases, nutrition, urology and renal disease, and
hematology. Basic research studies of the NIDDK
include biochemistry, nutrition, pathology,
histochemistry, chemistry, physical, chemical, and
molecular biology, pharmacology, and toxicology.
The institute supports research through grants,
career development, and awards. The Institute
contracts with various institutions and companies
for research and development projects.
In 1950 President Harry S. Truman established
the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic
Diseases as part of the Public Health Service. In 1972
the institute's name was changed to National
Institute of Arthritis, Metabolism, and Digestive Diseases.
In 1981 the institute was renamed the National
Institute of Arthritis, Diabetes, and Digestive and
Kidney Diseases (NIADDK). In 1986 the NIADDK was
renamed the National Institute of Diabetes and
Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).
The NIDDK is located at the NIH headquarters.
The NIH is located at Building 31, Room 9A04
Center Drive, MSC 2560, Bethesda, MD 20892-2560.
National Kidney Foundation
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is a
nonprofit foundation with the stated mission of
preventing kidney and urinary tract diseases,
improving the well-being of individuals affected by these
diseases, and increasing the availability of organs
for transplantation. The foundation states six goals:
to educate the public, support research, expand
patient services, provide educational opportunities
for professionals, influence health policy, and raise
funds.
The NKF was founded in 1950. Kidney
diseases include kidney infection, the most common
kidney disease, which can also involve infection of
the urinary tract and can lead to kidney failure.
Other diseases of the body, such as high blood
pressure and diabetes, can damage the kidneys.
Cysts, kidney stones, and tumors can damage the
kidneys, and kidney disorders can also result from
birth defects, injuries, poisoning, or from certain
medications.
Some kidney patients have their diseased
kidneys replaced by a transplant. Because people can
function with one kidney, some patients receive a
replacement organ from a close relative. However,
most transplant organs come from victims of
accidental death.
The NKF works to increase the number of
organs available for transplant through such efforts
as their sponsorship of the Olympic-style games
for transplant recipients, distributing donor cards,
and counseling donor families in their grief.
The NKF gives monetary grants to physicians
and scientists involved in research of kidney
disease. The foundation offers free health screenings,
rehabilitation programs for recovering kidney
patients, support for patients and families, summer
camps for children with dialysis, and financial aid
for patients.
The NKF publishes Advances in Renal
Replacement Therapy, a quarterly journal, and the
American Journal of Kidney Diseases, a monthly.
The National Kidney Foundation is
headquartered at 30 E. 33rd Street, Suite 1100, New York,
NY 10016. They can be reached by phone at 800-622-9010 or by e-mail at info@kidney.org.
Additional information, including the addresses of
branch offices, can be obtained through the NKF
web site: www.kidney.org.
National Native American AIDS Prevention Center
The National Native American AIDS Prevention
Center is a network of Native Americans with the
stated mission of stopping the spread of HIV and
related diseases among American Indians, Alaska
Natives, and Native Hawaiians, and improving the
quality of life for members of their communities
who are affected by HIV/AIDS (human
immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency
syndrome). The network works to eliminate sexually
transmitted diseases and tuberculosis and seeks to
improve Native American health status through
empowerment and self-determination. The
organization acts as a resource to native communities and
supports community efforts by providing education
and information services. The center also maintains
a speakers' bureau and compiles statistics.
The National Native American AIDS Prevention
Center was founded in 1987. Directors of the
organization include people with HIV, tribal officials,
public health professionals, health care providers,
and substance abuse program administrators.
A primary goal of the National Native
American AIDS Prevention Center is to establish working
agreements with local service providers that help
HIV-infected Native Americans gain access to
services. The network helps people find culturally
familiar resources such as those using Native
American spirituality and traditional healing. The
network also offers cultural awareness training to
service providers. The National Native American
AIDS Prevention Center works in urban areas and
on reservations.
The National Native American AIDS
Prevention Center is headquartered at 436 14th Street,
Suite 1020, Oakland, CA 94612. They can be
reached by phone at 510-444-2051 or by e-mail at
information@nnaapc.org. Additional information
can be obtained through the National Native
American AIDS Prevention Center's web site: www.nnaapc.org.
National Organization for Victim Assistance
The National Organization for Victim Assistance
(NOVA) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to
promote rights and services for victims of crime
and crisis. Members include victim and witness
assistance programs, criminal justice professionals,
mental health professionals, researchers, former
crime victims and survivors, and others committed
to the concerns of victim rights and services.
NOVA was founded in 1975. In its role as
advocate for victims, NOVA succeeded in such efforts
as greatly expanding the number of victim
compensation programs in the United States, so that by
1998 each state had such a program. In addition,
NOVA helped write the Anti-Terrorism Act,
enacted after the bombing of the Murrah Federal
Building in Oklahoma City, which allowed the Office for
Victims of Crime in the U.S. Department of Justice
to use federal funds to help victims of terrorism
and mass violence. NOVA also helped draft and
pass the federal Victims of Crime Act of 1984. In its
first twelve years, the Crime Victims Fund, based
on the act, transferred about $2.2 billion in federal
criminal fines to state compensation and local
assistance programs. NOVA also helped pass the
Violence Against Women Act.
NOVA provides direct services to victims
through a twenty-four-hour toll-free crisis line and
community crisis response teams. They assist
professional colleagues through training and
educational programs.
The organization's mailing address is 1730 Park
Road NW, Washington, DC 20010. NOVA can be
reached by phone at 202-232-6682 or 800-TRYNOVA, or by e-mail at nova@try-nova.org.
Additional information can be obtained through the
NOVA web site: www.try-nova.org.
National SIDS/Infant Death Resource Center
The National SIDS/Infant Death Resource Center
(NSIDRC) provides information and technical
assistance on sudden infant death syndrome, also
called SIDS or crib death, and related topics. Sudden infant death syndrome is the death of an
apparently healthy baby under one year of age, the
cause of which is unknown. In most cases, the
baby is found dead a few hours after being put to
bed. Even following an autopsy, a death scene
investigation, and a thorough look at the baby's
medical history, the cause of death cannot be
found. In many countries SIDS is one of the
leading causes of infant death.
The NSIDRC was founded in 1980 and was
sponsored by the Maternal and Child Health
Bureau (MCHB) of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services.
NSIDRC seeks to promote understanding of
SIDS and to provide comfort to those affected by
SIDS. NSIDRC works with policymakers, parents,
researchers, educators, medical and legal
professionals, care providers, and counselors. NSIDRC's
products and services include information sheets
and other publications. NSIDRC also maintains a
database of research and public awareness
materials. NSIDRC distributes informational materials for
the National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development.
The National SIDS/Infant Death Resource
Center is headquartered at 2070 Chain Bridge Road,
Suite 450, Vienna, VA 22182. They can be reached
by phone at 703-821-8955 or 703-821-2098, or by
e-mail address at sids@circlesolutions.com.
Additional information can be obtained through the
NSIDRC web site: www.sidscenter.org.
National Stroke Association
The National Stroke Association (NSA) is a
nonprofit organization dedicated to issues concerning
strokes, including prevention, treatment,
rehabilitation, and research.
Stroke is a leading cause of death in the
United States. Strokes are usually caused by blood clots
that block circulation to the brain. People at risk of
stroke include those with high blood pressure,
diabetes, high cholesterol levels, and a smoking
habit. Depending on what area of the brain is
affected, stroke victims may lose function of various
parts of their bodies. Recovery usually includes
professional rehabilitation services.
The National Stroke Association was founded
in 1984. Soon after, the NSA produced a statement
of guidelines for stroke prevention, published in
the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The NSA acts as a resource for stroke victims
and their families as well as health care
professionals and health care institutions. The
association works to prevent stroke through a number of
programs, offering educational materials and
assistance in the development of stroke support groups.
The National Stroke Association seeks to help
create universal standards of care for stroke
victims. The NSA promotes guidelines for American
hospitals and works to keep health insurance
reimbursement levels commensurate with increasing
health care costs. The association works to place
the problem of stroke on the national agenda as a
top funding priority, collaborating with key
organizations, institutions, and agencies throughout the
United States on this and other goals.
The National Stroke Association is
headquartered at 9707 E. Easter Lane, Englewood, CO
80112. They can be reached by phone at 800-STROKES. Additional information can be obtained
through the NSA web site: www.stroke.org.
National Women's Health Resource Center
The National Women's Health Resource Center
(NWHRC) is a nonprofit organization that aims to
help women educate themselves about female
health topics. The organization declares its
dedication to helping women make informed decisions
about their health and encouraging women to
embrace healthy lifestyles to promote wellness and
prevent disease. NWHRC works with leading
health care experts and organizations to develop
health materials specifically for women. The
NWHRC began in 1988.
The center works to provide health care
professionals with additional resources for their
patients. NWHRC staff and its Women's Health
Advisory Council, a group of health experts, seek to
provide professional perspective and commentary
on women's health issues.
Through partnerships with health care,
education, and advocacy organizations and government
agencies, the NWHRC tries to promote timely
issues concerning women's health. The NWHRC
also seeks partnerships with such commercial
entities as pharmaceutical and managed care
companies, hospitals and other health systems,
corporations, and media establishments. The NWHRC
sponsors national public education initiatives, such
as campaigns to educate women about
contraception, menopause, heart disease, and osteoporosis.
The NWHRC produces a number of
publications on a variety of women's health topics,
including The Book of Women's Health, a home
reference source. Its newsletter, the "National
Women's Health Report," presents an in-depth
review of a featured health topic each issue. The
NWHRC also seeks to supply media sources with
credible health information. The center maintains a
database of nationwide health resources as well as
a web site intended to be a full resource for
women's health.
The National Women's Health Resource Center
is headquartered at 120 Albany Street, Suite 820,
New Brunswick, NJ 08901. They can be reached by
phone at 877-986-9472 or by e-mail at info@
healthywomen.org. Additional information can be
obtained through the NWHRC web site: www.healthywomen.org.
Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying
Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying is a
peerrefereed journal that features articles about
terminal illness, bereavement, mourning, the process of
dying, funeral customs, and suicide. The journal
accepts contributions from professionals in
universities, hospitals, clinics, retirement homes, suicide
prevention centers, funeral homes, and others
concerned with thanatology, the study of death.
Omega is affiliated with the Association for
Death Education Counseling (ADEC), a
multidisciplinary, professional nonprofit organization
dedicated to promoting excellence in death education,
bereavement counseling, and care of the dying.
ADEC works to promote and share research,
theories, and practice in dying, death, and bereavement
and to provide a forum for professionals to
advance the body of knowledge and promote
practical applications of theory in these areas.
The journal seeks to meet the needs of
clinicians, social workers, and health professionals who
must deal with problems in crisis management—for
example, terminal illness, fatal accidents,
catastrophe, suicide, and bereavement. Omega covers
topics in the fields of psychology, sociology, medicine,
anthropology, law, education, history, and literature.
Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying is
published by the Baywood Publishing Company,
located at 26 Austin Avenue, Box 337, Amityville,
NY 11701. They can be reached by phone at 800-638-7819 or by e-mail at info@baywood.com.
Additional information can be obtained through the
Baywood Publishing Company web site: www.baywood.com.
Oncology Nursing Society
The Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) is an
organization of registered nurses and other health care
professionals dedicated to excellence in caring for
cancer patients. ONS states its vision as leading the
transformation of cancer care through initiating
and actively supporting educational, legislative,
and public awareness efforts to improve the
treatment of people with cancer.
ONS's stated mission is to promote excellence
in oncology nursing and quality cancer care. It
seeks to do this by providing nurses and other
health care professionals with access to the highest
quality educational programs, cancer-care
resources, research, and support networks. ONS
works with many other nursing and health-related
organizations throughout the world to educate
professionals and promote information sharing
among nurses. The society also seeks to make the
issue of cancer care a priority on the legislative
and policymaking agenda.
ONS began with the First National Cancer
Nursing Conference in 1973. In 1974, after a group
of nurses attended a nursing session at a major
cancer conference, it gathered names of more
interested nurses and initiated a newsletter, which
later became the Oncology Nursing Forum. The
society was officially incorporated in 1975. The
society publishes two journals, Oncology Nursing
Forum, the official journal of the ONS, and
Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing.
The Oncology Nursing Society is
headquartered at 501 Holiday Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15220-2749. They can be reached by phone at 412-921-7373 or by e-mail at customer.service@ons.org.
Additional information can be obtained through
the ONS web site: www.ons.org.
Palliative Care Australia
Palliative Care Australia is a key organization for
palliative care in Australia, whose stated goal is to
work toward the relief of pain and suffering of
dying people and the provision of the care they
need. Palliative Care Australia defines hospice and
palliative care as "a concept of care which
provides coordinated medical, nursing and allied
services for people who are terminally ill, delivered
where possible in the environment of the person's
choice, and which provides physical,
psychological, emotional and spiritual support for patients,
and support for patients' families and friends."
Palliative Care Australia began in 1990 as the
Australian Association for Hospice and Palliative
Care, Inc. The organization sprung out of an
affiliation of state palliative care associations who first
came together at the Australian National Hospice
Palliative Care Conference held in Adelaide in 1990.
Palliative Care Australia's aim is to provide
a national forum for the exchange of ideas and
information on matters relating to hospice and
palliative care and to encourage the spread of
information to the general community and to
professional, paraprofessional, and volunteer caregivers
through education and community awareness
programs. It seeks to consult with government and
health authorities on the needs of people with
progressive and terminal illnesses and their families
and caretakers. Palliative Care Australia advises
hospice and palliative care organizations
throughout Australia, assisting in the development of
appropriate standards for hospice and palliative care
in the country.
Additional information can be obtained
through the Palliative Care Australia web site:
www.pallcare.org.au.
Partnership for Caring: America's Voices for the Dying
Partnership for Caring: America's Voices for the
Dying is a national nonprofit organization that
brings together individuals and organizations in a
collaborative effort to improve how people die in
American society. Among other services,
Partnership for Caring operates the only national crisis and
informational hotline dealing with end-of-life
issues. The organization also provides state-specific
living wills and medical powers of attorney.
Partnership for Caring is devoted to raising
consumer expectations for excellent end-of-life
care and increasing demand for such care. It is the
only end-of-life organization that puts individuals
and organizations and consumers and
professionals together to create a combined effort that insists
that society improves how it cares for dying people
and their loved ones.
In 2000 Choice In Dying, an organization
dedicated to making advance directives available,
became Partnership for Caring: America's Voices for
the Dying, which broadened its scope.
Partnership for Caring promotes a society in
which death and dying are respected as significant
life-cycle events. High-quality, complete palliative
care, including hospice, would be assured. Support
for the tasks required to achieve a satisfying level
of life completion and closure would be provided
for dying people and their loved ones.
The Partnership for Caring hotline number is
800-989-9455. People can contact the Partnership
for Caring office if they need assistance regarding
a specific end-of-life situation, to speak with legal
staff, to obtain information on living wills and
medical power of attorney, or to speak with a
representative about publications or becoming a partner.
Partnership for Caring is headquartered at
1620 Eye Street NW, Suite 202, Washington, DC
20007. They can be reached by e-mail at pfc@
partnershipforcaring.org. Additional information
can be obtained through the Partnership for Caring
web site: www.partnershipforcaring.org.
Project on Death in America
The Project on Death in America (PDIA) works to
promote a better understanding of dying and to
transform the culture and experience of dying and
bereavement in the United States through research,
scholarship, the humanities, and the arts. Its claims
to foster innovations in the provision of care,
public education, professional education, and public
policy. The PDIA seeks to help transform the
culture surrounding death.
The PDIA is part of the Open Society Institute,
which describes itself as "a private operating and
grantmaking foundation that seeks to promote the
development and maintenance of open societies
around the world by supporting a range of
programs in the areas of educational, social, and legal
reform, and by encouraging alternative
approaches to complex and often controversial issues." It
was established in 1993 and is part of the Soros
foundations network, a network of organizations
created by the wealthy philanthropist George
Soros. In 1994 Soros founded the Project on Death
in America. He decided to give funds toward the
problem of dying because of his own family
experiences with death. The death of his parents "made
me realize that there is a need to better understand
the experience of dying," he said. The project
seeks to encourage broader philanthropic support
in the field of palliative care. The PDIA awards
grants to academic professionals and others who
are studying issues of death and dying.
Project on Death in America is
headquartered at Open Society Institute, 400 W. 59th
Street, New York, NY 10019. They can be reached
by phone at 212-548-1334. Additional information
can be obtained through the Soros/Project on
Death in America web site: www.soros.org/death.
SHARE Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support
SHARE Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support is a
nonprofit group with the stated mission of serving
those whose lives have been touched by the
tragic death of a baby through miscarriage, stillbirth, or
newborn death.
The group's support includes emotional,
physical, spiritual, and social healing. The
secondary stated purpose of SHARE is to provide
information, education, and resources pertaining to the
needs and rights of bereaved parents and siblings.
Its objective is to aid all of those in supportive
roles, including family, friends, employers, church
members, caregivers, and others.
SHARE began in 1977 at St. John's Hospital in
Springfield, Illinois. The first support group met
after one bereaved parent and several hospital
staffers worked together. SHARE eventually grew
to over 130 chapters internationally. SHARE helps
form local groups whose activities include holding
monthly support meetings, providing lists of
resources, developing keepsake kits, and developing
parent-to-parent support.
SHARE publishes a number of publications,
including Caring Notes, a quarterly newsletter. All
information packets, correspondence, and support is
free of charge for bereaved parents.
A major SHARE fundraising effort is soliciting
for "love gifts," which are monetary donations
given in honor of someone or as a memorial to a
baby, relative, or friend. People may send
donations to National Share Office, 300 First Capitol
Drive Street, Charles, MO 63301-2893. SHARE can
also be reached by phone at 800-821-6819 or by
e-mail at share@nationalshareoffice.com. Additional information can be obtained through the SHARE
web site: www.nationalshareoffice.com.
Society of Military Widows
The Society of Military Widows is a national
nonprofit organization whose stated purpose is to
benefit widows of members of all branches of the
uniformed services of the United States whose
husbands died either during active service or
following retirement. The society provides moral
support, advice, and referrals to help the widows of
career military members return to normal living.
The organization seeks to educate the American
public concerning the problems and needs of
military widows. It works for fair legislation and
survivor benefit programs, monitoring legislation and
programs affecting military widows in the U.S.
Congress, Department of Defense, and Veterans
Administration.
The society was founded in 1968 by Theresa
Alexander to serve the needs of women whose
military husbands died. In 1984 the society
affiliated with the National Association for Uniformed
Services, which represents a broad spectrum of
military-related interests, in order to create a
strong, unified legislative force.
The society publishes a quarterly newsletter, the
National Association of Military Widows, and hosts
an annual convention for its members. Widows
eligible for membership must possess a valid URW
(un-remarried widow) military identification card.
The Society of Military Widows is
headquartered at 5535 Hempstead Way, Springfield, VA
22151. For questions related to a spouse's death or
about rights and benefits as a military survivor, the
society can be reached by phone at 800-842-3451,
ext. 3009 or by e-mail at benefits@militarywidows.
org. Additional information can be obtained
through the Society of Military Widows web site:
www.militarywidows.org.
Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior
Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior is the
official journal of the American Association of
Suicidology (AAS), an organization of individuals and
groups interested in the study of suicide
prevention and life-threatening behavior. These members
include psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers,
nurses, health educators, physicians, directors of
suicide prevention centers, clergy, and others from
various disciplines.
The journal began in the early 1970s, and is
published by Guilford Publications, known for its
publications concerned with psychology,
psychiatry, and the behavioral sciences. The journal is
edited by Morton M. Silverman, M.D., from the
University of Chicago, and includes scholarly research
and clinical experience.
Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior reaches
professionals worldwide and employs an
interdisciplinary approach, covering biological, statistical,
psychological, and sociological approaches to
suicidology. Article titles of the journal have included
"Collaborating to Prevent Suicide: A Clinical-Research Perspective," "Suicide Among
Adolescents and Young Adults: A Cross-National
Comparison of 34 Countries," "Suicidality Patterns and
Sexual Orientation-Related Factors among Lesbian,
Gay, and Bisexual Youths," "Stressful Life Events
and Impulsiveness in Failed Suicide," "Early
Suicide Following Discharge from a Psychiatric
Hospital," "Loneliness in Relation to Suicide Ideation and
Parasuicide: A Population-Wide Study," "An
Epidemiological Profile of Suicides in Beijing, China,"
and "Are UN Peacekeepers at Risk for Suicide?"
Guilford Publications is located at 72 Spring
Street, New York, NY 10012. They can be reached
by phone at 800-365-7006 or by e-mail at info@
guilford.com. Issues of the journal can be viewed
on the Guilford Publications web site: www.guilford.com. The AAS is headquartered at 4201
Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 408, Washington,
DC 20008. Additional information can be obtained
through the AAS web site: www.suicidology.org.
The Compassionate Friends
The Compassionate Friends (TCF) is a nonprofit,
self-help support organization for bereaved
parents. The stated mission of TCF is to help families
resolve grief resulting from the death of a child of
any age. The organization also provides
information for friends and family of the bereaved. The
group has no religious affiliation or membership
dues. TCF does not participate in legislative or
political controversy and operates primarily through
local chapters.
The Compassionate Friends was founded in
1969 in Coventry, England, following the deaths of
two young boys when a hospital chaplain
introduced the two sets of parents. They invited other
newly bereaved parents to join them and soon
organized as a self-help group. The chaplain helped
develop other chapters around the world. The
Compassionate Friends was incorporated in the United
States as a nonprofit organization in 1978. There are
now TCF chapters in every state, totaling almost
600, and hundreds of chapters in Canada, Australia,
Great Britain, and other countries.
TCF offers help to bereaved siblings. Since
many areas do not have TCF groups, the Sibling
Forum is available online for siblings from all over
the world. Interested siblings need to request the
password by e-mail from rep@compassionate
friends.org.
The Compassionate Friends publishes a
national magazine, We Need Not Walk Alone, available
by subscription. They also publish brochures such
as "When a Child Dies . . . TCF Can Help," "Caring
for Surviving Children," "Surviving Your Child's
Suicide," "When a Brother or Sister Dies," and "The
Death of an Adult Child." The organization hosts an
annual national conference in the United States.
The Compassionate Friends can be reached at
P.O. Box 3696, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3696. Chapter
information can be obtained by phone at 630-990-0010 or 877-969-0010. Information about Canadian
chapters can be obtained by e-mail at TCFCanada@
aol.com. Additional information can be obtained
through The Compassionate Friends web site:
www.compassionatefriends.org.
The National Organization of Parents of Murdered Children
The National Organization of Parents of Murdered
Children (POMC) is a self-help organization that
seeks to assist families that have had a child who
has been murdered. The issues that the group
involves itself with include keeping murderers in
prison, assisting families with unsolved cases,
promoting murder prevention programs, providing
emotional support for families, and providing
information and advocacy for any survivor of a
homicide victim.
Parents of Murdered Children was founded in
1978, and offers support and friendship to those
who have experienced the violent death of a
family member or friend. It seeks to help survivors
return to physical and emotional health. POMC also
works to increase public awareness of the
problems faced by those who survive a homicide
victim. It provides information about the grieving
process as it pertains to murder as well as
information about the criminal justice system as it
pertains to survivors of a homicide victim.
POMC establishes self-help and support groups
that meet regularly. It distributes literature and
provides guest speakers for organizations. It has
created prevention programs to help stop violence. In its
newsletter, POMC includes a schedule of parole
hearings for prisoners serving homicide sentences.
Parents of Murdered Children is headquartered
at 100 E. 8th Street, B-41, Cincinnati, OH 45202.
They can be reached by phone at 888-818-POMC
or by e-mail at natlpomc@aol.com. Additional
information can be obtained through the POMC web
site: www.pomc.com.
United Network for Organ Sharing
The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is
a nonprofit organization that maintains the organ
transplant waiting list for the entire United States.
This is mandated by law and under contract with
the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. UNOS matches organ donors to waiting
recipients 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Every
transplant program, organ procurement
organization, and tissue typing laboratory in the United
States belongs to the UNOS network.
UNOS was founded in 1984 and is responsible
for developing policies governing the transplant
community. This work is done by its forty-member
board of directors, comprised of medical
professionals, transplant recipients, and donor family
members.
UNOS is responsible for monitoring every
organ match to ensure that it conforms to UNOS
policy. UNOS members work together to develop
equitable policies that give all patients a fair
chance at receiving the organ they need. Recipients
are not discriminated against on the basis of age,
gender, race, lifestyle, or financial and social status.
All patients accepted onto a transplant
program's waiting list are registered with UNOS,
where a centralized computer network links all
organ procurement organizations and transplant
centers. UNOS maintains the database that contains
all transplant data.
When an organ becomes available, UNOS
coordinates the surgical teams that are involved. The
computerized matching process locates best
possible matches between donor organs and the
patients who need them. The final decision rests with
the patient's transplant team. If they decide the
patient cannot use the organ for any number of
medical reasons, the organ is offered to the next
patient on the list.
The United Network for Organ Sharing is
headquartered at 1100 Boulders Parkway, Suite
500, P.O. Box 13770, Richmond, VA 23225.
Additional information can be obtained through the
UNOS web site: www.unos.org.
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is an
agency of the United Nations (UN) that assists
nations throughout the world to build better health
systems. WHO establishes standards for many
goods including food and medicines. It also creates
standards for some medical procedures and
environmental health. A major goal of WHO is
prevention of disease. Toward this end, the agency works
with governments to provide safe drinking water,
adequate sewage disposal, and immunization
against childhood diseases. WHO identifies
important research goals and organizes researchers all
over the world to achieve these goals. It helps
name and classify diseases.
WHO was founded in 1948, three years after
the United Nations formed, and has its
headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. It also has six
regional offices in various parts of the world. WHO has
about 190 member nations. Its main branches are
the World Health Assembly, the Executive Board,
and the Secretariat. The World Health Assembly
meets once a year and consists of delegates from
all of the member nations. The Executive Board
advises the World Health Assembly and
implements its policies.
WHO has library services that provide users
with access to international health, medical, and
development information resources. These are
available to WHO headquarters, regions, and
country offices, ministries of health and other
government offices, health workers in member states,
other UN and international agencies, and
diplomatic missions. WHO library programs help
regions and developing countries achieve
selfsufficiency in providing information services to the
health sector.
Additional information can be obtained through
the WHO web site: www.who.int.
Appendix
© 2003 by Macmillan Reference USA. Macmillan Reference USA is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc.
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