Sunday, November 02, 2014

:Being Mortal"



I’ve just finished reading Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. It’s an amazing look at end of life issues, questions and discussions.


None of us wants to think about death, but - let’s face it - nobody gets out of this life alive. And whether or not we really think about it, we all have some thoughts about how we’d like to exit.


Gawande writes that the medical profession is focused on keeping the Grim Reaper at bay, and rarely gets into a discussion on how to deal with the inevitable.


He posits three questions that we, our doctors, and our families should consider as we‘re nearing that point. I think they’re worth repeating and thinking about.


1. What are your biggest fears and concerns?
2. What goals are most important to you?
3. What trade-offs are you willing to make and which ones are you not?


These are definitely things to think about - before our time comes.

1 comment:

Harriet said...

It's an interesting concept. Here, of course, where we never know which residents are leaving us forever, it becomes a daily topic.

I regularly receive irrelevant ads for end-of-life services, and I create sarcastic answers to all their questions. E.g., why is your service better than a savings account?