On April 18, 2000, participants at over 358 hospitals, universities, community organizations, and PBS stations nationwide joined a panel of noted end-of-life care experts for an interactive, 90-minute discussion on ways to improve care for the dying. For more information about this event, check out the video clips, transcript and videoconference highlights below.

Coalition Building The Role of Volunteers Living with the End of Life * Require Quicktime 3.0 or higher Preparing for the End of Life Understanding Palliative Care Cultural Differences in End-of-Life Care

For the full transcript of the April 18 Leadership Conference, click here.

"Starting the conversation is really key. People actually want to talk about this topic. Our first task as community organizers is to listen, solicit stories about dying, and caregiving. [The] issues that matter most will emerge." -- Dr. Ira Byock, Director of The Palliative Care Service, Founder of the Missoula Demonstration Project, Missoula, MO "I think the old adage is really true. The sum is greater than the parts. These really are complicated matters . . . it is only when we come together, when we share our resources and energies and support one another that we have a chance at resolving some of these issues." -- Myra Christopher, President, MidWest Bioethics Center, Kansas City, MO "[Volunteers] are our best ambassadors, our link to dot-com companies, law offices, and healthcare institutions. It's all a partnership. A big part of part of our work is to remind each other of our capacity to care for one another." -- Frank Ostaseski, Founding Director of the Zen Hospice Project San Francisco, CA "The patient's pain is whatever the patient says it is. If they say it's a five, it's a five. Listen to them." -- Edwina Taylor, C.R.N.P., Palliative Care Specialist, Cooper Green Hospital, Birmingham, AL