EOL Haunting but Families Want It

Two recent articles reflect the need for continuing conversation and discourse on end of life.

The Center for Practical Bioethics and many other organizations across the country are promoting National Healthcare Decisions Day April 16 for just that purpose. Find out more by clicking on www.practicalbioethics.org.

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Families haunted by end-of-life decisions
CNN
March 2, 2011

Family members felt they let their loved ones die by removing life support. Those who left patients on life support felt responsible for prolonging their suffering. The people who did not feel scarred by the experience, usually expressed confidence that they knew what the patient would’ve wanted.

No Death Panels, Please, But Poll Shows Americans Can Handle End-of-Life Chat
Matthew DoBias
National Journal
March 8, 2011

Roughly 3 out of 4 Americans, 78 percent, said that palliative care and end-of-life treatment should be part of the public discourse, and 93 percent said they believe such decisions should be a top priority for the U.S. health care system, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Regence Foundation and National Journal at a policy summit.