Dame Cicely Saunders
9/1/06
12:11 PM
Page 10
Inventing
the
Good
Death
BY GERARD BROGAN, RN
As millions prepare to highlight the world's
need for end-of-life care, it's fitting to
revisit the woman who started it all.
O
10
REGISTERED NURSE
W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G
MARY MCCARTNEY
n july 14, 2005 in the quiet, leafy suburb of Sydenham outside London, England, an elderly lady peacefully passed away. Not a remarkable event, as she like
hundreds before her, had spent her last days in the comfort of St. Christopher's
Hospice, the world's first modern hospice. What was remarkable was the woman
herself. She was Dame Cicely Saunders, founder of the modern hospice movement.
Saunders touched the hearts and minds of the British public as strongly as Florence
Nightingale and her legacy is felt around the world.
As hospice healthcare workers and other activists prepare to commemorate
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day on Oct. 7, 2006, an event to educate the public about and advocate for the rights of all people to access quality end-of-life care,
it's fitting to revisit the origins of the movement as we know it.
Born in Barnet, North London, in 1918, Saunders was the eldest child of well-off
but unhappy parents, who subsequently divorced. She was an awkward child, lacking in the social graces expected in the social milieu of the upper middle class. Her
awkwardness led to her being a studious, lonely child. However, Saunders flowered
into a bright, young woman and, educated at the finest schools, she gained entrance
to Oxford University. She began her studies in philosophy, politics, and economics
in 1939, but momentous changes were afoot in Europe. When war broke out later
that year, Saunders, wanting to contribute, gave up her studies at Oxford and, much
to the chagrin of her family, trained and qualified as a state registered nurse (SRN is
equivalent to the American "RN") in 1944.
SEPTEMBER 2006
