ABSTRACT
When the word hospice began to be used with some degree of frequency in the United States during the late 1970s, some people asked “What is this hospick thing?” Or “What do you mean by hot spice?” Misunderstandings like these were charming and harmless, but they also provided opportunities to educate questioners. In fact, the word hospice has its roots in a Latin word, hospes, that is also the root of hospital, hospitality, and hospitable. And the concept of hospice will be familiar to those who recall the medieval pilgrims who traveled across the Alps in their journey to the Holy Land. For those pilgrims, a hospice was a place where they could obtain shelter, rest, food, and prayer. St. Bernard’s Hospice in the Alps, for example, became famous for providing this type of succor and support, as well as for its distinctive breed of rescue dogs.
