Congress should aid ‘good death’ like my mother's

About 40 percent of Americans who die each year do so under hospice care, whose purpose is to keep a terminal patient comfortable, not to fight death. As Congress considers health care reform, it should find ways to encourage hospice use — "good death" — and save not only a lot of pain and fruitless (if heroic) effort, but a lot of money, too. JWR

First Death for Washington Assisted-Suicide Law

Linda Fleming, 66, of Sequim, Wash., died Thursday evening after taking lethal medication prescribed by a doctor under the law. Ms. Fleming received a diagnosis of Stage 4 pancreatic cancer a month ago, and was quoted in the release as saying: “I am a very spiritual person, and it was very important to me to be conscious, clear-minded and alert at the time of my death." NY Times

First Death for Washington Assisted-Suicide Law

Linda Fleming, 66, of Sequim, Wash., died Thursday evening after taking lethal medication prescribed by a doctor under the law. Ms. Fleming received a diagnosis of Stage 4 pancreatic cancer a month ago, and was quoted in the release as saying: “I am a very spiritual person, and it was very important to me to be conscious, clear-minded and alert at the time of my death." NY Times

Baby Faith Dies at 93 Days

Faith Hope Walker passed away peacefully this weekend in the arms of her mother Myah. Faith was born with a condition called anencephaly, in which a portion of the child’s brain fails to fully develop. Myah was pressured by hospital staff to have an abortion. Doctors told her that Faith was alive only because "she was attached" to her mother and that even if she survived to birth, she would be neither able to hear nor see. She refused. “For some reason I had to give the doctors my decision over and over again, which was frustrating. One doctor asked, 'Can I ask why you want to continue this pregnancy?' I guess some people are baffled by unconditional love.” LifeSiteNews, Myah's blog

Cherished time with the dying puts the lie to euthanasia

I spent the three weeks leading up to my mother's death by her side. Each night, I slept on the floor beside her bed and in the daytime was at her side. We were blessed to have the medical and care support that enabled Mummy to die at home in her own bedroom. Each day brought its own laughter, tension and tears. Our mother showed us what true human dignity is -- it cannot be given or taken away. It just is and love and care are what it demands. She showed us how graciously she accepted the indignities of terminal illness and her dying. Guelph Mercury

Is Obama the first pro-euthanasia president?

The government already knows that medical care in the last weeks of life is where most medical dollars get spent. Same goes for money spent on people with significant, although not necessarily terminal disabilities. Marry that to the President’s commitment to cut health care costs, a society that increasingly thinks helping people die is just dandy, and a medical profession that is increasingly utilitarian, and you have the perfect plan to make people with severe medical problems, including those with disabilities, into useless eaters. Disability Matters

Al Pacino interested in portraying Dr. Death

Al Pacino is in negotiations to star in "You Don't Know Jack," an HBO Films biopic about Dr. Jack Kevorkian that Barry Levinson will direct. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film will trace the rise of Dr. Death as he builds his infamous "Mercy Machine," conducts his first assisted suicide, and starts a media frenzy with his epic legal battles defending a patient's right to die. First Things

Dignitas probed in death of depressed man

The Dignitas assisted suicide facility in Switzerland is coming under investigation for allegedly killing a man with depression. Under the euthanasia law in Switzerland, someone can only be killed in an assisted suicide if they suffer from a terminal illness. LifeNews

Helping Social Workers Focused on an Aging Population

Boston University’s Institute for Geriatric Social Work has received a five-year, $3.1 million grant to continue efforts to prepare the social services workforce for an aging society. Bureau of the Census population projections released in 1996 predict that from 2010 to 2030, the U.S. geriatric population will rise from 39 million to 69 million, a 75 percent increase. From 2030 to 2050, the growth rate is projected to increase another 14 percent, bringing the total of older Americans to 79 million. BU Today

Get to Know: True Compassion Advocates

True Compassion Advocates are individuals in communities all across Washington state, advocating true compassion, life-affirming choices, comprehensive community support, and excellence in end-of-life care. "We believe that persons with life-limiting illnesses and disabilities have the right to compassionate care, loving support and comfort through the natural dying process. Our goal is to provide such vulnerable patients with all the help they need to live their lives well, in dignity and painlessly, until natural death occurs."

Editor: I've added their blog to the list of outside links.

Down Syndrome Yields Key Cancer Clue

Solid tumors are very rare in people with Down syndrome. Why? The answer almost certainly lies among the 231 extra genes they inherit with their extra copy of chromosome 21. People with Down syndrome rarely get diseases linked to the overgrowth of blood vessels. One of the genes on chromosome 21 encodes a protein that blocks a factor needed for blood vessel growth. This protein, DSCR1, is overproduced in people with Down syndrome. Web MD

Disability Rights Wisconsin sues hospital for violating rights of disabled patients

In a case that could have broad legal implications for when some patients are allowed to die, an advocacy group is alleging that doctors at UW Hospital broke the law by withholding treatment from two developmentally disabled patients with apparent cases of pneumonia. DWR

A substantial majority of Alzheimer's patients are cared for at home by family members; estimates range from two-thirds to 95 percent. This growing army of caregivers props up the nation's health care system with free labor, worth more than $100 billion a year, or more than twice the cost of nursing home and paid home care combined. But these largely invisible caregivers, who buttress the nation's health care system, pay a terrible price. The architecture of the family is turned upside down, turning children into parents and parents into children. Emotional bonds and financial resources are strained, even in the most resilient households. Caregivers get sick from the stress. NY Times

Elder-care costs deplete savings of a generation

More than 15 million adult children are taking care of their aging parents, a responsibility that often includes paying for all or part of their housing, medical supplies and incidental expenses. Many costs are out of pocket and largely unnoticed: clothing, home repair, a cellular telephone.
Adult children with the largest out-of-pocket expenses are those supervising care long distance, those who hire in-home help and those whose parents have too much money to qualify for government-subsidized Medicaid but not enough to pay for what could be a decade of frailty and dependence. NY Times

7 Things Caregivers Should Know about Swine Flu

In the United States, the new swine flu, officially called A(H1N1), does not appear to be more dangerous than the seasonal flu, but experts are uncertain as to its future course. So what do the elderly and their caregivers need to know about the new swine flu? Read the advice of several experts. New York Times

Easy Email for Seniors

PawPawMail was designed to simplify email to allow seniors / the elderly / aging parents... in short, anyone unfamiliar with computers to use a simple email system immediately. PawPawMail

Suicide expert turns on 'Dr Death'

The former chairman of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society, Dr. Michael Irwin, has launched a fierce attack on the Australian voluntary euthanasia campaigner nicknamed "Dr. Death," Philip Nitschke. Dr. Irwin, 77, a retired GP, pulled out of a trip abroad last year with ten people contemplating an assisted suicide when he realised that at least two of them were "totally unsuitable" to make the trip. He has admitted helping several terminally-ill patients to commit suicide. Telegraph

Bill to legalize assisted suicide introduced in Canadian Parliament

Francine Lalonde, of the Bloc Québécois political party, introduced a private members bill to legalize the practice that is allowed in three states in the U.S. This is Lalonde’s third attempt to legalize assisted suicide in Canada. LifeNews

Critics try to undo futile care law

Legislation pushed by Texas Right to Life requires life-sustaining treatment to continue for patients deemed futile by doctors until a transfer to another medical facility can be arranged, if their family requests it. Currently, hospitals can stop life support treatment after 10 days in certain cases if the patient is terminally or irreversibly ill and cannot express his or her wishes about treatment. "No other state in the country has a law that Draconian," said Rep. Bryan Hughes, a Mineola Republican. "The balance of power is completely shifted against the patients and the families." Houston Chronicle

British grandmother oldest stem cell donor

Erica Henderson, 75, has been allowed to transfer her cells to Paul Hallowes despite being too old under medical guidelines. He would have died without the stem cell therapy but despite having three children and five grandchildren a suitable donor could not be found. Mr Hallowes was told he had just two years to live until doctors discovered his sister was a 'perfect match' for the procedure. Telegraph

Organizations supporting embryonic stem cell research

Michigan Right to Life has compiled a helpful list of organizations that have expressed support for human embryonic stem cell research. Information comes from three sources: policy statements, membership in coalitions that lobby for the research and signatures on letters expressing public support for the research. Some organizations listed also contribute funding for embryonic stem cell research. Stem Cell Research Cures

Sadly, the list includes popular and well-known organizations such as: Alliance for Aging Research, ALS Association, Alzheimer's Association, American Cancer Society, American Federation for Aging Research, American Heart Association, American Parkinson's Disease Association, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Parkinson's Action Network, Parkinson's Disease Foundation, and many, many more.

Baby boomers key to winning euthanasia debate, says ‘Dr Death’

"The baby boomers are the same people who fought for women's rights, fertility control and the like, and they are now getting to the age where the issue is end-of-life choices." According to Dr. Philip Nitschke, the controversial Australian pro-euthanasia campaigner dubbed "Dr. Death," the post-1945 generation is at the forefront of the moral debate on an individual's right to choose when and how they die if they are terminally ill. The fight for what he termed "the last right" is approaching a watershed as the baby boomers demand to be given the right to take their own lives with or without the help of others. Around 50 middle-aged and elderly people turned up at Glasgow's Unitarian Church yesterday to hear the controversial medic calmly explain how, if they choose, they could take their own lives. Several other venues across the city had refused to host the public meeting and workshop. Sunday Herald

Dutch euthanasia expert to give Londoners tips on suicide

Sixty people have already signed up to hear retired psychiatrist Dr. Boudewijn Chabot give tips on death by starvation and dehydration when he visits next week. In 1991, he was arrested in the Netherlands for providing a fatal dose of medication to a patient. He has published a scientific guide to DIY suicide in the Netherlands to help people end their lives quickly and painlessly. The free workshop, “One Way to Die — Stop Eating and Drinking,” is based on his guide, which contains detailed information on using drugs as well as “committing” suicide by starvation. London Evening Standard

Debating an end-of-life decision

A year ago, when a doctor finally diagnosed the brain disease that had been making it harder for her to walk without falling, Rona Zelniker told her son and daughter that she was going to end her life while she still could, before complete disability set in. Her children were grateful for the way she prepared them, and for the time they had together at the end. Philadephia Inquirer

Wesley Smith notes that "the word 'suicide' is never used in the article except in a brief reference to the Oregon law. There is no doubt that was deliberate: The (assisted) suicide movement has convinced many in the media not to use that term except in cases of transitory distress or teenagers--because it is judgmental and has a negative connotation. Can't have that: Suicide for reasons of disease or disability should be viewed positively. Note too, that the issue of suicide prevention is never raised." Secondhand Smoke

25 Observations on Growing Old

Pastor Chris Humburg of Altoona Regular Baptist Church in Altoona, Iowa, recently compiled a list of 25 observations on what it's like to grow old in Christ -- with godly suggestions on how to respond to that fact of life. He generously allowed Baptists for Life to publish them.

Euthanasia doctor allowed into UK for death talks

Australian Dr. Philip Nitschke was questioned at Heathrow Airport earlier but has been admitted into Britain. He will be here for two weeks, giving talks at various locations including Glasgow. The medic said: "I will discuss the problems of existing legislation in Britain where suicide is not a crime." He will also hold "closed sessions" for members of his pro-euthanasia group, Exit International, on different suicide methods. Members must be over-50 or seriously ill to be allowed access to the sessions, and must declare any mental health problems. The Herald

Doctors face orders to 'kill on demand'

Physicians in Montana could be facing "kill-on-demand" orders from patients who want to commit suicide if a district court judge's opinion pending before the state Supreme Court is affirmed. Oregon and Washington, states that allow a "right to die," include an opt-out provision for physicians with ethical or religious opposition to participating in killing a patient. Montana's situation, created late last year in a decision from First District Court Judge Dorothy McCarter in the Baxter et al. v. Montana case, is different. There is no provision for a doctor to refuse such "treatment" for a patient. WND