Grown up conversation quality of life/length of life
The grown up conversation we need is about quality of life as opposed to length of life. Isolation is a terrible thing for people and in lockdown, it is causing considerable distress. We need to trust people to be able to make the decisions which are best for them.
Many older people are philosophical and realise that they have to die of something,. They are already past the age they expected to live, have survived heart attacks, strokes etc which would have killed them in the past and they want to live to the end not exist in a living death in confinement. Care homes now cannot provide live entertainment and this affects both clients and entertainers very badly. I am a care home entertainer and, before Covid 19, I have seen stroke and dementia patients sing with me and one man, who hardly spoke, even recited the complete "Tam O Shanter" with me. There is no substitute for live entertainment and I am heartbroken to think of care home residents suffering from loss of them and the loss of visitors of all kinds. This is not the end of life any of us want or deserve.
The NHS will not be overstretched if older people wherever they live, have been allowed to sign "do not resuscitate" forms and consented that, if they fall ill with Covid 19, nothing will be done to save their lives, only to make them as comfortable as possible where they are.
To this end, measures would be put in place to ensure they have access to food and family members would be provided with appropriate PPE so they can visit and care for them if that was agreed. Families often find it hard to discuss their views on illness and death but Covid 19 provides an opportunity to begin these difficult discussions and I believe that we should take it.
Why the contribution is important
In Scotland and other civilised countries, there is a right to life but there must also be a right to die in the manner that you choose and the right to choose how to live your life towards the end.
My elderly parents are suffering greatly as I cannot visit them and support from vital health care and social workers is heavily restricted to emergencies only. This has led to my mother being hospitalised once during lockdown. My mother cannot hear well enough to chat on the phone and they are unable to use the internet. My mother's medication requires her to be monitored by psychiatric nurses who are not, currently, able to. This situation is becoming intolerable and I believe that health care staff should engage with the Scottish Government to produce a strategy which balances quality of life against length of life to reduce suffering.
by CarrieT on May 09, 2020 at 03:39PM
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