Release date: March 29, 2007
Contact: Elaine Justice at 404-727-0643 or elaine.justice@emory.edu

Emory Examines Critical End-of-life Issues at Public Forum

A provocative, two-day public conference at Emory University will tackle issues surrounding life's toughest reality—we all have to die. "Changing the Way We Die: Religion, Medicine and Improving the Dying Process," will bring together scholars, physicians, civic and religious leaders, and the Atlanta community April 19-20 to discuss pressing issues surrounding the end of life.

Admission is free, but registration is requested. Click for the full schedule, and to register for the event, which will be at the Emory Conference Center Hotel.

"We will explore the diverse meanings that people find in death and dying, as well as the religious, ethical, medical and legal practices that surround the dying process," says Emory Provost Earl Lewis. "By confronting some of the most difficult questions about the human condition, we hope to encourage new conversations and collaborative opportunities across our community and the wider society about these issues of ultimate concern to us all. Most important, we hope this is an opportunity for deep reflection and profound learning for all."

The conference opens with a discussion featuring Margaret Battin, one of the nation's leading defenders of physician-assisted suicide and a distinguished professor of philosophy and adjunct professor of internal medicine at the University of Utah.

A session titled "Changing Meanings and Institutional Settings of Dying" will look at the latest developments in palliative care, while "Religious Practices and Perspectives on Dying" will feature physicians from a range of religious faiths.

"Last Rights: Policy, Responsibilities and Rights of the Dying" will include Josh Norris, director of legal advocacy for the Georgia Advocacy Office and Nan Grogan Orrock, Georgia State Representative, District 36.

"The end of life is a powerful area where ethics, healthcare, law and spirituality intersect," says Kathy Kinlaw, interim director of Emory's John and Susan Wieland Center for Ethics and one of the conference panelists. Kinlaw co-chaired the working group that helped draft Georgia's House Bill 24, designed to provide a more user-friendly advance directive for healthcare – which recently received unanimous approval from the state House.

"There is a growing awareness locally and nationally that we need to focus more attention on ways to better tend to people in decline," says Kinlaw.

"Changing the Way We Die" was developed by the Emory Initiative on Religion and the Human Spirit and the Office of the Provost.

Emory University is one of the nation's leading private research universities and a member of the Association of American Universities. Known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities, Emory is ranked as one of the country's top 20 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system.

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