Bethany Canning

This project is the culmination of my Minor In Writing.  I worked on it all throughout my last semester of college and I'm proud of what I accomplished.  The final product is an essay on the role of medicine in the lives of teminally ill patients.  In my first proposal for the project, I planned to write about the conflicts and complements of faith in the lives of healthcare workers.  By the time I submitted a revised proposal, the project had veered in a completely different direction (having to do with Ann Arbor memories).  With some guidance, I found myself back in the area of my original idea.  I chose to write about the last months and days in the lives of those with terminal illnesses because I believe medicine does a great disservice to those in its care when it does not treat patients holistically- as it so often does not.  It is important to push for change in how death is handled and how we perceive death as a culture. 

 

Revision was incredibly important for this project.  I did some preliminary research but once I conducted the first interview, I knew that I wasn't seeing the whole picture.  The first interview led to more research and another interview.  My conversations with my mentor, Dr. Goss, and Mr. Miller were incredibly beneficial to my revision process.  I brought my experience with death and the research I did to the project, but these three people helped me understand what truly characterizes end-of-life experiences through their unique perspectives.