Proponents often argue that assisted suicide is necessary to prevent poor death experiences. However, there’s much that can be done to improve access to hospice and improve the quality of hospice services available. Let’s improve care at the end of life, not end the patient’s life prematurely.
“Hospice care can be one of the most taxing types of care to provide and one of the most anxiety-inducing to see family members experience.
‘Due to the short length of stays, hospice workers and the patients and families they serve are stressed with decision-making in an already difficult time,’ said Clark, president of the California and Palliative Care Association.
Many advocates and researchers feel that especially because hospice is such a sensitive area of care, reforms need to be made.
‘Hospices are rarely inspected,” Connors said. “Most hospice inspections are conducted by private agencies that have strong incentives to ignore poor care.’
‘Nothing is done when serious violations are detected,” he continued, “and findings of neglect are covered up.’
People who have come to the difficult realization that their family members are close to dying can often only find peace of mind when they know that their family members will be able to enjoy ease and comfort in their last periods of living…”
Read more at the Sacramento Bee…