“Doctors die, too. And they don’t die like the rest of us.”
Navigating end-of-life conversations and decisions is emotionally fraught, and can also be physically painful. The following two articles highlight how many medical professionals opt out of aggressive treatments for advance stage illnesses and “heroic measures” such as CPR and other means of resuscitation, and choose to die comfortably in their own homes, unlike the vast majority of people who die in hospitals.
How Doctors Die: It’s Not Like the Rest of Us, But It Should Be – by Dr. Ken Murray, professor of medicine and retired family practice physician
Knowing How Doctors Die Can Change End-Of-Life Discussions – by Stephanie O’Neill (NPR), highlighting not only how many doctors choose to forgo the treatment they prescribe to patients, but also their emotional reactions to the treatment of their dieing patients.
These articles may help foster end-of-life treatment discussions for yourself and loved ones, to ensure that your wishes are carried out.