THE PATIENTS, THEIR STORIES, AND THE EXPERIENCES of caregivers confronting terminal dementia are based on my experiences caring for elderly patients. I am greatly indebted to the many people who shared their stories, including the staff at Steere House and the families of those who died with Oscar at their bedside. I truly believe that readers will be as moved by these accounts as I was when I first heard them and I have tried to remain as faithful to them as possible. I apologize for any factual errors that I have made in retelling the stories and in transcribing our interviews. If I have made errors, please know that they were unintentional.
Please note that for narrative purposes I have made some changes that depart from actual events. Moreover, in the interest of preserving confidentiality in patients with end-stage dementia, I have changed some names and modified some backgrounds to protect identities. Additionally, some of the characters that appear in this book are composites of multiple patients. Nevertheless, the experiences represented in this book are based on real-life patients and their caregivers whom I have been fortunate to care for over the years.
Finally, though I was skeptical early on, Oscar the cat’s peculiar ability appears to be as real as it is mysterious, and he continues to regularly hold vigils over departing patients. It is my hope that readers will allow him to continue his “good work” unencumbered for as long as he chooses and will forgive the occasional mistakes that he makes from time to time. After all—no human (or cat) is perfect.