Here is my deep moving conversation with Dr. Gustavo Ferrer on the topics of death, dying and how to live in this world with love and grace.  His latest book, Graceful Exit, is a modern masterpiece and essential reading for anyone making their way through this process we call life.

Gustavo Ferrer, MD FCCP, is an experienced pulmonologist trained both in Cuba and the US, founder of the Cleveland Clinic Florida Cough Clinic, Interstitial Lung Disease and president of Intensive Care Experts. An authority on respiratory ailments with more than 20 years of experience. His new book, Graceful Exit: How to Advocate Effectively, Take Care of Yourself, and Be Present for the Death of a Loved One.

He also wrote, Cough Cures: The Best Natural Remedies and Over-the-Counter Drugs for Acute and Chronic Cough (Moxie Life Press, April 2016) challenges our Western mindset that over medicates. Dr. Ferrer offers a blend of Western and natural remedies to effectively address both acute and chronic respiratory issues. He has also translated Cough Cures into Spanish for Latin America titled Cura Tu Tos con los Remedios de Abuelita: Una Guía Completa de los Mejores Remedios Naturales y Medicinas Sin Receta Médica Para la Tos Aguda y Crónica (Moxie Life Press, October 2016).

In 1999, he left Cuba to work with the United Nations University to work as director of respiratory research in the Venezuela’s Orinoco River region. He emigrated to the United States the following year, where he completed his residency at Texas Tech University and received a fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care at George Washington University. He joined the Cleveland Clinic Florida and led efforts to open centers of excellence for lung fibrosis and chronic cough.

Dr. Ferrer left the Cleveland Clinic in 2013 to establish Intensive Care Experts, a practice dedicated to bringing high-quality medical advancements to acute care hospitals, long-term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and home-care patients. In December 2016, he was appointed as one of the board members for the NCQA’s Geriatric Measurement Advisory Panel. He continues to be actively involved in medical research for the advancement of medicine and patient care. He is the Program Director of the Aventura Hospital Pulmonary and Critical Care and Pulmonary Disease.

He has received several prestigious awards, including: being listed among the Best Doctors in the US by U.S. News & World Report, Most Compassionate Doctor, Patients’ Choice Award, and multiple teaching awards. He has been featured in USA Today, NBC News, CNN en Español, Huffington Post, Health Times, Doctors Channel, Doctors Show Sirius XM, Miami Herald, Fox News, Telemundo and many more.