The In-Between

★★★★★★★★☆☆ 8/10

256 pages

What’s it about?

This is a memoir written by hospice nurse Hadley Vlahos.  Her story begins as she decides to become a nurse and then focuses on her experiences in hospice care. She tells the stories of twelve different hospice patients and how those patients impacted her life and work.

What did it make me think about?

End of life and the in-between.

Should I read it?

I read this as part of the hospice program I volunteer with in Vero Beach, Florida.  Thank you VNA Hospice- you are truly a gift to so many. For their volunteers, they have organized a monthly book club, and this is our first book. What a great selection! Hadley Vlahos is just who you would want to show up at your door if you are being assessed to enter the hospice program.  She certainly conveys in this book the honor and responsibility that come with being involved in the final stages of someone's life (unlike the nurses, the volunteers benefit from having no medical responsibilities).  Along with the medical staff, the caregivers are truly the heroes, as they carry a heavy load.  I enjoyed these stories, and anyone interested in end-of-life issues will also appreciate them.

A passage I marked

"While I still don't have all the answers, the one thing I can tell you for certain is that there are things that defy medical explanations, and that in between here and whatever comes next, there is something powerful and peaceful."