The official website of Michael Gordon, MD, MSc, FRCPC.

 

APPEARANCES

Dr. Gordon is a well respected and much sought after speaker to both general audiences and health care professional. As an engaging and charismatic speaker, he shares with listeners his thought on the following topics:

Ethical Issues in Geriatrics and Long-term Care. The focus is on the challenges faced by health care professionals and families of frail elders that encompass the clinical and ethical domains of practice, such as those related to artificial nutrition and hydration, aspects of medical care, resuscitation, and symptom management at the end-of-life.

 

End-of-life Dementia Care. The emphasis is on the special challenges that occur in those with the various stages of cognitive impairment, and how health care providers and family members struggle with making the decisions that will provide a balance between respect, dignity and comfort, as those with dementia reach the latter stages of their life.

 

An Overview of the History of Aging. This presentation, often used as an introduction to a conference on aging, uses art, literature and historical references to bring the audience to appreciate the long and illustrious history of care for the aging throughout the world.

 

Caring for Your Aging Parent.  Directed to children of aging parents and other loved ones this presentation reflects the content of the book Parenting Your Parents. Its focus is first to recognize and address the process of frailty in one’s loved one, and then taking the necessary steps for the caregiver to assure their ability to continue with this most challenging task

 

WORKHOPS AND SEMINARS

These are provided primarily to medical professionals at all stages of education. The topics include:

• Evidence-Based Medicine, an historical perspective;
• Ethical Duties of Physicians – the whys and wherefores of what we are expected to do;
• Why all the fuss over nutrition and hydration? – an in-depth exploration of the implications of end-of-life decision-making about nutrition and hydration, and why it continues to be an enormously contentious issue in health care delivery;
• Religious perspectives of end-of-life decision-making – looking at the driving forces that result in conflicts between the secular and religious principles and practices, and end-of-life decision-making.

ARTICLES

Many publications reproduce writings of Dr. Michael Gordon. The topics include those related to quality of life, challenges of the older population, and how families, friends and the health care system may interact with this growing population. A monthly series in Canada’s Canadian Jewish News is reproduced on the website RetirementHomes.com under the section Insight on Aging. Articles reprinted from the Medical Post can be found on the on-line medical journal Dermanities website.

 

Other on-line media outlines include the Dannemiller Foundation and its companion website where a number of articles have appeared on issues related to palliative care - Palliative Care: Achieving the Goals of Comfort and Dignity and Ethical End-of-Life Care for Patients with Dementia.