Choices for End of Life Care

Dr. Gary Johanson graduated from University of California San Francisco Medical School in 1975. He completed his 3-year residency training in Family Medicine in Santa Rosa and then opened a family practice right here in
Sebastopol with Dr Shubin in 1978. Within that first year of practice, he discovered a keen interest in the new concept of hospice and became a board member and medical consultant to the first Home Hospice here in
Sonoma County.
His interest in hospice and the much broader field of Palliative Care continued to expand until he evolved to full time in this field 17 years ago.
During his career, he became a founding member and Fellow of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and served on the Board and Ethics Committee of the Academy in its early years. He became board certified in Hospice and Palliative Medicine right as the field achieved
specialty status.
He is currently Medical Director of St Joseph Memorial Hospice and Home Health in Sonoma County
and has been a key contributor to the development of Palliative Care Services for St Joseph Health at
a system level. He is currently part of a collaborative with Providence and Dignity Health in a statewide
initiative focused on Advance Care Planning and Whole Person Care.