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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Care at the end of life
— restoring a balance | | Author(s) | Diane E Meier, R Sean Morrison |
| Journal title | Generations, vol XXIII, no 1, Spring 1999 |
| Publisher | American Society on Aging, Spring 1999 |
| Pages | 104 pp (whole issue) |
| Keywords | Death ; Dying ; Pain ; Terminal care ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | The dying process for the oldest old is characterised by a high prevalence of untreated pain and other symptoms, due to chronic conditions and the attendant progressive functional dependency and unpredictability of the disease course. The editors of this issue of Generations suggest that it is time to restore the balance, so that relief and suffering and cure of disease are seen as obligations of the medical profession that is dedicated to patient care. Articles on palliative care consider the needs of older patients and their families, the particular challenge of working with patients with severe dementia, and the training of nurses, doctors and nursing home staff. End-of-life decisions and issues are examined from cultural, ethical and spiritual perspectives, also of relevance in requests from patients to doctors for "assisted suicide": the arguments for and against are given. The needs of caregivers and how family members cope with grief and bereavement are examined, as well at nursing home patients' need for intimacy: many spend the end of their lives in emotional and physical isolation. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-990824208 B |
| Classmark | CW: CX: CT7: LV: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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