PrintJune 5, 2010
Death Panels and Mom
My mother was a vibrant, spirited individual who died six months ago in the throes of late-stage Alzheimer's disease. Many years before, she had made it very clear that she did not want "unnecessary" life support systems, and I was fully aware of her wishes -- but according to Jewish law, one is not supposed to hasten another person's death.During her two-year stay at a superb nursing home, I was regularly in touch with the nurses, the aides, and the attending physician, as well as the medical director. Their compassion and patience were extraordinary. As my mother's condition worsened, I wrote the medical director and asked, "The philosophical/ethical question that percolates constantly in my mind is, what is supposed to be done when someone is on hospice care? What is supposed to happen 'naturally' -- but what intervention is appropriate and ethical?"I am not the only individual to have tackled these issues. In Time magazine, Roger Rosenblatt wrote of his...(Read Full Article)
