Euthanasia is a very touchy subject, especially within the medical field. As a healthcare advocate, it is our job as professionals to better the lives of our patients. What happens when there is nothing more you can do?
I understand, being a Home Health Aide that works a lot with Hospice, that comfort care is important. But truly, when a suffering patient looks to you to ease the pain what do you do? Should you apologize and say their is nothing more I can do?
I can hardly say no more treats to my cat when he gives puppy dog eyes, much less a patient dying alone of cancer. In my opinion, for what it is worth, Euthanasia is most certainly not murder and should never be referred to as such.
If Euthanasia was legal, but very strict in regulations and rules, it would be very beneficial to many terminally ill patients. This may be the only healthcare decision a patient makes within their life, and they should be allowed to make such a decision when conditions permit. We all have choices in this world, what gives you or I the right to take such choices away from someone in such a situation.
What is your opinion? Do you agree or disagree? Do you have a story, personal or not that pertains to this topic?
Your first account in your "book" from Robin Love is that of a daughter in an estranged relationship with her mother (the POA), and who was going to court to be appointed guardian which seemed to be against her mother's wishes. Anyone who has worked in healthcare for any length of time knows that when families can't agree on the plan of care for a patient, the estranged family member's interpretation of subsequent events is emotionally-charged and may not be reality from a medical point of view.
ETA: I wrote the above after reading just the first couple of paragraphs. Now, I've read the entire "Case Four." You are completely irresponsible and inflammatory to put forth that story as an example of medical "killing" in hospice. I am sure the whole thing reads like a crazy conspiracy theory, and I can't believe that you think these stories (if all of them are like this) are proof of it. You're a crockpot!
The father of Robin Love was competent and stable in his chronic condition. He was nowhere near a terminal phase and he pleaded not to be sent to hospice. He, being competent, should have had his own wishes honored per patient autonomy principles, but they weren't and he was dead shortly thereafter.
Taking a stable, chronically-ill patient against their own wishes is not respect for the patient or in compliance with any normal standard of care. Just because the daughter was not the POA doesn't mean she didn't know her father and see him regularly! She did!
Hers is just one of many, and the accounts of such cases come from healthcare professionals with medical degrees as well as doctorates in nursing. It is irresponsible to assert that hospice can do no wrong, unless someone is a member of the hospice cult that believes it, contrary to all other niches of healthcare, can do no wrong.
How about being realistic and admitting sometimes things go wrong?
Probably most physicians today want their decisions to reflect the latest medical science and the evidence. It makes sense. But anyone who knows anything about medical studies knows that different studies result in different outcomes and conclusions. The design of the studies, the number of subjects, the controls used, and so many other factors effect what conclusions are reached. Sometimes, if you want a certain result, you can be sure to get it if you design the study just so. In fact, there are well-respected physicians debating the whole idea of "evidence-based medicine. A November 2008 seminar was entitled, "The Evidence Never Lies? Critical Debates in Evidence-Based Medicine" with leading physicians, bioethicists and professors of philosophy debating the pros and cons of this whole field of endeavor. Topics included: "What's right and what's wrong with evidence-based medicine?" "What is the role of clinical research evidence in medical practice?" and "What is the patient's role in medical decision-making?"
If evidence-based medicine is used to ration care and decide what treatments are offered citizens under Medicare, Medicaid or a possible national health system, who decides what evidence and what studies are used? Who decides what the conclusions should be? Will the physician and patient decide or will a bureaucrat somewhere in the government, a PPO, HMO or other managed care company decide?
How you are going about it 'speaks' louder than your true motives. This excerpt is not moving or informative. If this is a genuine concern of yours, and you believe this is really happening, you will need to do more than self-publish and have a website. You need research, you need peer review, and you do need an editor (most people do).
What's happened in the past when you went to actual 'authorities' with this? Have they turned you away or ignored you? If so, there are more reasons for them to have dismissed you than a conspiracy of physicians and capitalism . IOW, you can't honestly insist you've been dismissed SIMPLY because you are trying to tell some truth the authorities would rather us peons not know.
It could be that what you believe is happening IS NOT HAPPENING AT ALL. How strongly you feel about this is no measure of the reality. How strongly you feel about this has literally nothing to do with what is actually happening. This is a more likely explanation of why you've been dismissed by the people who really COULD look into this than a conspiracy.
I just can't get over this! It is already so hard to help patients reach the point of acceptance when facing death, and helping them to understand that hospice is a beautiful resource to help them and their families. What a terrible and poisonous thing to do, convincing the masses that hospice is out to murder them. It's rare I oppose free speech, but when that free speech stands to do actual damage to others, it should not be allowed. This is just disgusting.
Specializes in BNAT instructor, ICU, Hospice,triage.
Hi All! I didn't get a chance to read all the comments on this thread but wanted to share that I'm almost done reading "Stealth Euthanasia" by Ron Panzer. You can get it free at Hospice Patients Alliance: Patient Advocates. It's excellent. One of the things it mentions is that nurses are trained by for-profit hospice companies to see morphine as "helping patients to breathe" when it actually makes it harder for some to breathe. Everything the nurses are trained to say (about the dying process, about family being in denial if they question what's going on, etc) isn't always appropriate for all cases, but hospice decides it's time & the patient is sedated and basically killed.
I believe this is what's happening will all my heart. Some hospices use stealth euthanasia; I've seen it myself. I also think it's criminal and unethical. I think if the patient wants it, fine. The patients I'm talking about never see it coming. One day they're talking and laughing, the next they're sedated and dead within weeks.
I have no idea how any nurse can partake in this. I'm not talking about compassionate death with dignity situations. I'm talking about the patient being a pain to the staff or family and before you know it, here comes the haldol and morphine.
If if you've never seen it, congratulations. I have and its traumatizing.
You are completely out in left field here! Everything you say is 100% erroneous.
Speaking of which, it's about time we had a meeting. Spidey's Mom, toomuchbaloney, and all my other hospice compatriots, we are seriously overdue for some circle dancing, ceremonial burning, chanting and incantation. We need to triangulate a Starbucks equidistant from all of us and set a time!
I do not currently work in a hospice saturated market.
I feel the same way about hospice "alarmists" as I do about anti-vaxers.
Given that this thread is about euthanasia, and hospice is NOT in the business of euthanasia as a philosophy or business model, I will cease and desist.
Your are right. This conspiracy stuff reads JUST like the anti-vaxxers that we just had a couple of weeks going round and round with on an other thread. The book I linked earlier in this thread however does have some of the hysterical thought process regarding what constitutes end-of-life care. (No Good Deed: A Story of Medicine, Murder Accusations, and the Debate Over How We Die). It was an eye-opening book for me after working as a hospice nurse. I had no idea that people would consider some of the end-of-life issues to be actively murdering someone. And this is so sad because in this thread I've tried to counter-balance the idea that we even need euthanasia or assisted suicide due to lack of care of patients in emotional or physical pain who feel led to end their lives quickly. I truly think hospice and palliative care would help negate the idea that you have to kill yourself or have someone else kill you. And then we have these crazy accusations come along tarnishing hospice and palliative care. Very sad and frustrating.
Speaking of which, it's about time we had a meeting. Spidey's Mom, toomuchbaloney, and all my other hospice compatriots, we are seriously overdue for some circle dancing, ceremonial burning, chanting and incantation. We need to triangulate a Starbucks equidistant from all of us and set a time!
. IOW, you can't honestly insist you've been dismissed SIMPLY because you are trying to tell some truth the authorities would rather us peons not know. 
dudette10, MSN, RN
3,530 Posts
Your first account in your "book" from Robin Love is that of a daughter in an estranged relationship with her mother (the POA), and who was going to court to be appointed guardian which seemed to be against her mother's wishes. Anyone who has worked in healthcare for any length of time knows that when families can't agree on the plan of care for a patient, the estranged family member's interpretation of subsequent events is emotionally-charged and may not be reality from a medical point of view.
ETA: I wrote the above after reading just the first couple of paragraphs. Now, I've read the entire "Case Four." You are completely irresponsible and inflammatory to put forth that story as an example of medical "killing" in hospice. I am sure the whole thing reads like a crazy conspiracy theory, and I can't believe that you think these stories (if all of them are like this) are proof of it. You're a crockpot!