New Compassion & Choices Campaign to Start the Conversation About End-of-Life

Compassion & Choices is launching a new campaign today aimed at encouraging patients to talk about end-of-life decisions with their doctors. According to C&C, the goal is to empower patients to understand their choices and make informed decisions. 

Today, C&C President, Barbara Coombs-Lee has an article about the launch in the Huffington Post. Read the article and spread the word.

As all of you know, I'm a huge proponent of informed decision making in the doctor's office. Patients should know their options and be equipped with all of the tools they need in order to make the best decision for themselves. 

Especially with something as important as end-of-life matters, how to proceed should be a conversation between doctor and patient (or between the entire medical team and the patient), and I applaud Compassion & Choices for taking such a proactive step in this matter. 

The article includes a link to a "Letter to My Doctor" that you can use to begin this conversation if you are nervous about having it in person. Compassion & Choices is also providing visitation forms that LGBT patients can fill out to help ensure their partners are allowed in when they are hospitalized.

These are awesome resources from an awesome organization.   

Death with Dignity Specifics Adopted ... and Not Adopted

Another article on the difficulties of implementing Washington's new death with dignity law, again, it is specifically focused on who will be choosing to opt out of the law and who will be choosing to administer it. (Individual pharmacists, doctors, hospitals, etc., are allowed to choose under the legislation.)

It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out.

One example: if you read this article closely, you will note that, while the University of Washington has not decided to opt out of implementing the law, the director of palliative care consult services at the UW does not plan to prescribe any lethal medications to his patients for now. He will instead refer them to Compassion & Choices of Washington.

Contradictions like these are sure to run throughout the system. I just hope there isn't too much confusion. We all know how confusing the healthcare system already is.

The Conscience Rule

Barbara Coombs Lee of Compassion & Choices has recently been blogging at Huffington Post about the "conscience" rule.

This law went into effect on January 19 it allows medical workers to refuse to participate in care that goes against their moral beliefs. Obviously, one of the areas this can and will affect is death with dignity. And we already know some facilities in Washington state have decided not to participate in the newly passed law.

Particularly troublesome for me would be any physicians who would refuse treatment but also would not tell patients that the option is available for them. The post by Barbara Coombs Lee says most physicians who object to a treatment would let a patient know about a treatment but some would not—no figures are given though.

Whatever side you come down on, it is an important issue that is getting lost in the midst of economic worries. Check out the blog or Google the topic—but Google "conscience rule HHS," or you won't get decent results.