Before I Let Go: An End-of-Life Narrative

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Keywords:

hospice, African Americans, health, social work practice, racism

Abstract

This writing was inspired by the loss of a long-term family friend. In the research on hospice and end-of-life care, there is little focus on the lived perspectives of Black individuals who are involved with hospice services, and even less work that focuses on this experience for Black women and families. I wrote this from the perspective of an academic who works primarily with health inequities and a social worker who spent much of my direct practice experience working with individuals who were critically ill and often making decisions near the end of life. Through this piece, I implore us as a profession not to lose sight of who we are and why we do this work.

Author Biography

Tyrone C. Hamler, University of Denver

Tyrone C. Hamler, PhD, MSW (he/him) is Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver, Denver, CO (tyrone.hamler@du.edu, @THamler).

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Published

2025-09-29

How to Cite

Hamler, T. C. (2025). Before I Let Go: An End-of-Life Narrative. Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, 31(3), 50–53. Retrieved from https://reflectionsnarrativesofprofessionalhelping.org/index.php/Reflections/article/view/2110

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