A physician’s perspective while receiving palliative care (Larry’s story)

May 23, 2013

In this video, Dr. Larry Librach talks about his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer six weeks before and learnings from his time as a palliative care physician

Watch as Larry talks about how quickly his treatment began for pancreatic cancer. He also talks about the fact that his journey will be shorter than he expected but that he’s focusing on coping and helping his family do the same.

He shares how his previous career is influencing his perspective and that it’s important to talk about wishes and dying. He discusses how hope isn’t a fixed thing and how he hopes to die at home. He also talks about planning for the type of care that’s needed and accepting that everyone else’s lives continue.

It’s been a matter of seeing hope as not a fixed object. That it’s refocused all the time. I mean if your hope was to live forever, forget it. There are no immortals among us and that’s been part of the issue. So that idea of hope as a moving target and refocusing on that.

Watch the video of Dr. Larry Librach talking about being a former palliative care physician

The Partnership’s Person-Centred Perspective initiative is committed to improving the patient experience. We are working with partners across Canada to find the best ways to offer a person-centred perspective throughout a person’s cancer journey and to help information flow throughout. The impact of a cancer diagnosis goes far beyond the physical disease. It affects every aspect of a person’s life. The initiative has focused on reporting about the patient experience, and giving health-care providers patient-centred tools and resources, which have been validated and standardized.