end-of-life counseling aka 'death panels'

[Charleston Chew]

Run time: 10:32 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z08V0ciiZLM   Posted on YouTube: February 08, 2011 By YouTube Member: PBS Views on YouTube: 18   Posted on DU: February 08, 2011 By DU Member: Charleston Chew Views on DU: 546

 
NEED TO KNOW | Atul Gawande on end-of-life counseling | PBS

As the Health Care Reform Act is attacked in courts and Congress, Need to Know discusses the quiet removal of one controversial provision, funding for end-of-life counseling (so-called "Death Panels") with Dr. Atul Gawande, author and medical writer for The New Yorker. Need to Know airs Fridays on PBS. Watch full-length episodes of Need to Know at http://video.pbs.org/program/1458405365/

[jwirr]

1. My daughter is a respiratory therapist and she is very aware of how

important end of life planning is. If someone is brought into the hospital and unable to speak for themselves then the hospital is required to take all emergency measures to keep them alive EVEN if they have stated to their children previously that they do not want heroic measures taken. If the hospital does not have the papers they have to follow the emergency procedures. So it is good to have a living will (health care will) filed with your doctors or even a copy in your purse/pockets.

What not having free counseling means is that people will not know what to say in the living will because they are not aware of what things they may or may not want. These wills are used only in the event of your forthcoming death. They are not to be implemented at any other time. I am lucky enough to have two medical personnel in my family so I did not need counseling but everyone is not as fortunate.

That being said, in my state there are several other non-profit organizations that help write living wills. Social Services come to mind and I think the VFW and Legion also do it. Repugs will use anything to cause trouble. I think when they start bitching about death panels in terms of end of life counseling we should ask them if they have a living will?