“The most personal thing that someone can give you is their story,” University of Nebraska at Kearney’s 2019 online 历史 M.A. alumna Sara Jane Ruggles said. “And in hospice, it's the last thing they're able to give.” 
 
For the past two and a half years, Ruggles has worked for 奥本克雷斯特临终关怀医院 in Bonners Ferry and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. As the nation’s first public historian working in healthcare, she has helped 55 individuals in hospice whose ages ranged from nine to 106 share their life story through oral history. 
 
太阳城娱乐官网’s online Master of Arts in 历史 通过与家人、朋友和其他安宁疗护团队成员沟通，以及与安宁疗护个体进行亲密访谈，使拉格斯具备了研究个体的技能。 She then shares the audio or video record of the individual’s story with the family completely free of charge. 
 
“I've had lots of families come back and say, ‘You gave me an hour with my mom,’” she said. “For families to come back and say, ‘This is a gift.’ That means I've thoroughly done my job so their story will not be a game of telephone throughout the generations.” 
 

Individual’s families aren’t the only to benefit from Ruggles work. 她也看到她的受访者通过深情地回忆他们的成就和记忆来反思和寻找生活的意义。 
 
“Watching somebody remember who they are and come to life through a conversation, it gives you goosebumps every time,” Ruggles said. 
 
这种鸡皮疙瘩正在全球蔓延。 
 
In April of 2023, 太阳城娱乐官网 Associate Professor of 历史 Dr. Will Stoutamire, Ruggles, and other medical and history professionals participated in a panel at the 国家公共历史委员会 in Atlanta, Georgia to share the importance of a historian working in a healthcare facility. 
 

卢森堡大学副教授兼当代和数字历史首席科学家托马斯·考文博士是众多与会者之一。 回到欧洲后，他邀请Stoutamire博士和Ruggles到卢森堡与欧洲教师和医疗专业人士分享他们的见解，希望能在一项研究中合作。 
 
“I actually called Will,” Ruggles said after receiving the email. “I was like, ‘This is real, right? 这不是诈骗邮件吧？’” 
 
The email was not a scam, and Ruggles made the more than 16-hour flight to Luxembourg in January of 2024 to share her passion with the rest of the world.  
 
Ruggles’ two-hour presentation included Dr. Stoutamire, Luxembourg University’s history and nursing faculty, the university’s grant writers, a local nonprofit assisted living organization, and University of Sheffield Director of Student Recruitment for School of Allied Health Professions, Nursing and Midwifery Dr. Michelle Winslow. 
 

并不是每天都能见到自己心目中的英雄。 Ruggles got that opportunity when she met Dr. Winslow, who has led England’s University of Sheffield’s Oral 历史 Group for many years, which focuses on oral history in the healthcare system. 
 
Ruggles正在与卢森堡大学沟通，并希望很快回来，开始与国际小组合作，设计一项研究，研究临终关怀病人通过口述历史分享他们的故事所带来的神经学、心理学和社会心理方面的好处。
 
“I'm still pinching myself because I don't know why I'm the person that's lucky enough to follow their passion and not only make a living with it, but watch it benefit people in the way I want to bless the world,” she said.  
 
她把这归功于从第一天起就得到的持续支持。 
 
“Between my family, 太阳城娱乐官网, Auburn Crest - every step of the way I'm lucky enough, I’ve had people believing in me,” Ruggles said.