Cathleen Fanslow-Brunjes, RN, MA, CNS, is an internationally acclaimed expert in the fields of death, dying, grief, nursing, and hospice care.

Over the years, Cathy has worked with more than 40,000 dying persons, their families, their caregivers, and the professional staffs involved with them. She has worked extensively with dying children and adolescents, as well with adults.

Cathy is an acclaimed pioneer in the field of hospice: She created the Hospice Program for New York’s Visiting Nurse Service; she worked at the first certified hospice in Long Island; and she created the first free-standing hospice in Switzerland. She was director of nursing at Calvary Hospital in New York, the specialized hospital for advanced cancer patients, considered by many to be the first hospice in the U.S.

One of Cathy’s most impressive professional accomplishments has been the development of the “Standards of Care for the Dying Patient.” This protocol is used throughout the United States Veterans Administration Hospital System, one of the largest heal-care systems in the world, with thirty-five medical centers across the U.S.

Cathy has received many awards over the years, including the National Hospice Organization’s President’s Award, the Award for Excellence from the National Hospice Association and the Healer of the Year award for outstanding achievement in the field of healing from Nurse Healers Professional Associates. She also received an award from the New York State Hospice Organization in recognition of extraordinary service to the New York Hospice movement.

Cathy has also had the priviledge of being asked to speak at the First an Second Annual Conference in Rome. (see following media release for more information)

Cathy has written and published several articles on death, dying, bereavement, and hope over the last thirty-five years including her most recent book; The Power of Hope to Cope With Dying; The Four Stages of Hope in 2008.