A History of Care - 250 Years of American Need, Service, and Care

Hospice & Palliative Care Today moves toward this July 4th--the 250th anniversary of the United States--by celebrating a different kind of story: the long, uneven history of how Americans have responded to suffering. This mural invites us to see that across war, epidemic disease, poverty, injustice, disability, serious illness, dying, and grief, the story of our country is also a story of service—of people who nursed, advocated, reformed, comforted, and widened the circle of care.

Our daily 25-part series traces a history marked by struggle and courage, by failures that demanded truth-telling and by acts of compassion that opened new possibilities for healing—not a straight-line tale of progress, nor a simple chronicle of harm. Join us each day for a new decade, reflecting on how the past shapes the hospice and palliative care we provide today—and the chapters we are called to write next. ~ Joy S. Berger, Editor in Chief