Living in the Light of Death

Little Rock, AR, 1998

KLRE/KUAR and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences joined in partnership to provide information to the central Arkansas community about decision-making in the last years of life.

The project opened with a 13-week radio series on various topics concerning end-of-life care. These 8- to 10-minute programs, featuring physicians, psychologists, cancer patients, and various community leaders, were broadcast each Thursday during Morning Edition and repeated during All Things Considered. Topics included hospice care, advance directives, physician-assisted suicide, bereavement and loss, palliative care training for physicians, Alzheimer's disease, AIDS, funeral planning, coping with the loss of a child and children coping with the loss of a family member, a physician dealing with terminal cancer, and support groups for families.

At the end of the 13-week series a live call-in radio show allowed listeners to ask questions of a physician suffering from terminal cancer and a physician who directs a hospice program for children. Listeners asked questions and shared their own experiences. A Web page provided transcripts of the programs and audio excerpts, a listing of community providers, and contact information for community organizations offering assistance in decision-making for end-of-life issues.

The second phase included the development of 30-minute monthly programs dealing with cultural differences in death and dying, assisted living, living wills and advance directives, one man's story about waiting to die, funeral and financial planning, dealing with the loss of a child, and talking about death in the modern industrial society.

At the end of the six monthly broadcasts, a town hall meeting was held to allow the community to ask questions and share personal experiences. Nationally known experts in palliative care participated in a panel discussion with local patients and health-care professionals. The meeting was broadcast live, allowing listeners to call in with questions or comments. Directories listing community resources were made available for all attendees.

Contact Information

Living in the Light of Death
Steve Barham, Underwriting Coordinator
Tel: 501-569-8485

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
A. Reed Thompson, M.D., Assistant Professor
Tel: 501-686-5011

Awards:

KLRE/KUAR Round One
Best Feature — Arkansas Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists