Sunday, December 27, 2009

Months to Live - Hard Choice for a Comfortable Death - Sedation - Series - NYTimes.com

Very good article on some of the hard issues in end-of-life care.

Months to Live - Hard Choice for a Comfortable Death - Sedation - Series - NYTimes.com:

While there are universally accepted protocols for treating conditions like flu and diabetes, this is not as true for the management of people’s last weeks, days and hours. Indeed, a review of a decade of medical literature on terminal sedation and interviews with palliative care doctors suggest that there is less than unanimity on which drugs are appropriate to use or even on the precise definition of terminal sedation.

2 comments:

Mary Ellen said...

This is worth reading - especially well before decisions need to be made. (I also enjoyed your Solstice account - wish I were closer to Philly to join in your singing!)

staśa said...

Thanks, Mary Ellen! I thought it the article was done well, too. Yes, it is definitely helpful to have conversations ahead of time. And I am realizing I need to make some changes to my living will.

For Solstice, at least, you don't *have* to be near me/us... You can do A Winter Solstice Singing Ritual yourself, you know. :) You really can do it in a small group with the CD -- I've done it that way several times, now. Or you can see if a choir or chorus you know is interested in taking on the singing. Or you can get some people together who want to learn the songs, and do it either in your living room or as a performance. Don't let the fact that it's been done as a big performance limit you or your imagination: it's really pretty versatile!

Blessings,
Stasa