2025 Professional Webinar: Perspectives on Voluntarily Stopping Eating and Drinking (VSED)

Voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (VSED) may be chosen by patients as a process to hasten their death. In this webinar, we will discuss how the process of VSED may unfold, particularly from the perspectives of the patient, their family, and the clinician. Clinicians working in end-of-life care are likely to encounter patients with questions about VSED, or patients who undertake the process. It is important to have an understanding of what VSED entails and the ethical considerations that surround it. We will encourage participants to come with questions and personal experiences to reflect on.

Webinar Objectives:

1. Describe the process of VSED from the patient, family, and clinician perspectives.
2. Explore the ethical considerations surrounding VSED.
3. Discuss participant experiences with VSED.

NACC Certification Competencies Addressed in this Webinar
Competencies will be listed soon.

Presenters Information

Dr. Jared Lowe is an Assistant Professor in Medicine at the University of North Carolina. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and in Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Dr. Lowe is an attending physician in the UNC adult palliative care program and is the Medical Director for UNC Hospice. His clinical interests are in improving the delivery of hospice and palliative care in the community, and he is engaged with research to better understand the experiences of caregivers at the end of life.

Sedona T. Montelongo BCC-PCHAC is on the NACC Board of Directors and serves as the Chair of the Governance Commission. She is a Palliative Care Chaplain with Pain and Palliative Associates. More information about Sedona will be posted soon.