End of life decisions

Jane Gross of the New York Times, continues her excellent blog on aging, with which she frequently reflects on her own mother's aging, final illness, and death. This entry is indicative of her series, both in its personal dimension and in the useful information provided.

Gross shares the process of her mother's decisions and actions just before her death:

She often longed for the oblivion of Alzheimer’s disease. But her sharp mind — she never skipped a beat — entitled her to organize her own death, within legal limits, which she did by deciding to stop food and hydration. We had discussed and researched this option, and we had read enough to be reasonably confident this manner of dying was not a frightful ordeal but rather a gentle death. We trusted that an enlightened nursing home like the one she was in wouldn’t force her to eat and drink. They had readily accepted earlier decisions to forgo diagnostic tests or hospitalizations, and later antibiotics for pneumonia.

Our study of what is known as V.S.E.D., or “voluntarily stopping eating and drinking,” was impressive for amateurs, if I do say so myself. My mother had a pretty good death, on her own terms, and we had the nursing home’s full support. I’m proud and grateful to have been able to advocate for her and to have been by her side.

The end of life process will only continue to get more attention as hospice and palliative care programs expand and become better known. Also, advance directives for health care and good powers of attorney for health care can undergird a person's decisions, even when the person is not capable of expressing his or her wishes at the time.

(Photo by mike 23; used by permission.)