We (Americans) live in a death-defying, death-denying society where the inevitable outcome is frequently prolonged through futile treatments and heroic measures. A cultural shift must occur regarding peoples' views on death and dying because, even in the face of top-notch medical technology and countless interventions, all living people will die. Death, just like birth, is a very natural part of the circle of life.
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The following is a psychic reading that will eventually prove accurate with every single person in existence today: we're all going to die.
The fact is that life will end, and how Americans choose to cope with this reality gives us an overall picture of our society's position on death; generally speaking, the American attitude is one of avoidance (Johnson, 2004). Simply put, we live in a death-defying, death-denying society.
According to Gemignani (2011), death in times past was not necessarily less tragic to those who lost loved ones, but death was more prevalent, more public, more visible, and more a natural part of life than it is today. Many generations ago, 'passing away' was an intimate affair where aged people lived and died at home surrounded by family, and the surviving relatives provided the post-mortem care in the immediate hours after death. In modern times, death has neatly been removed from the home as the overwhelming majority of deaths now take place in healthcare institutions such as hospitals and nursing homes.
In 2009, Medicare paid $50 billion just for doctor and hospital bills during the last two months of patients' lives - that's more than the budget of the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Education (CBS News, 2010).
Is the massive amount of money being spent during the final months of life really helping, or are the billions of dollars simply prolonging the inevitable outcome that every person will face?
Countless procedures, medications, treatments, and consults that are ordered during the immediate time frame prior to the end of life end up being futile. Also, many patients and family members want everything humanly possible done to fight off death despite having received a terminal prognosis. This issue is only going to become more widespread as the Baby Boomer generation, which includes a whopping 78 million people, sweeps through the already overburdened healthcare system in the coming decades.
Can the current system be sustained with so many new entrants and so few dollars to spread around?
A national conversation about common issues surrounding death and dying must take place soon. However, in this highly politicized era, I do not envision this happening anytime in the near future. Still, we should make a more heartfelt effort to educate the public on other options such as hospice, palliative care, and private duty nursing. According to CBS News (2010), multiple studies have concluded that most patients and their families are not even familiar with end-of-life options and things like living wills, home hospice and pain management. We must make them aware of all choices and respect their decisions.
Finally, a cultural shift needs to take place regarding our views on death and dying. Until Americans realize that death is a natural part of the circle of life, people will continue to do everything humanly and technologically possible to defy the outcome that every currently living person shall meet.
