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SPIRITUAL: Death with Dignity BY JOYE M. CARTER, M.D. Forensic Pathologist, former Chief Medical Examiner of Harris County, TX, and author. EditllT''s note: The following article is a reprint of chapter Jour in Dr. Carter's book "I Speak FM The Dead. "Printed with the authllT''s permission.
\ Joye M . Carter, M.D .
I Speak for the Dead
WINTIR 2004
r r here are many times when our senior citizens become ill and, having .1. suffered a complication of a disease or serious injury, seem to become medical experiments. In every office you will find tubes, electrodes and catheters. Sometimes these patients have agony on their faces. It is painful for me to watch. I interact with a lot of senior citizens and they are always quite concerned about their future and their quality of life as they age. Many times these individuals will ask me what will happen to them as they grow older and become sickly. Sometimes they will state, "I do not want to end up in your office." I reply to them very honestly, "If you do not want to end up in my office, then there are things that you must do and do now." 路 If indeed someone has died a traumatic or unnatural death, then according to the law, an examination must be done in the medical examiner's office to determine the cause and manner of death. If the person has died and there is no evidence that foul play has occurred, and there is a strong documented history of chronic illness or disease, and if the proper papenvork has been completed, there will be no need to have that individual's body brought to the medical examiner's office. These issues are rarely attended to and many senior citizens, upon their deaths, end up at the medical examiner's office mainly because no one knew how to get in touch with a family member or a physician. A great deal of the time, the reason that medical examiners investigate deaths of enior citizens is because they lived alone and, sadly, died alone. In this situation, I cannot help but think of my grandparents and be grateful that they did not die alone. Many do not realize that anybody 21 or older can make out an advance directive. This document directs what the individual wants done in case he or he i no longer able to make decision for themselves. This is an important document to have completed and have it either in your personal po e ion or hare it with our ph ician,
minister, adult child or care-giver. The document should be easily accessible in your home or hospital room, or you should have directions to locate it in your safety deposit box. Having a completed directive allows medical personnel to understand the patient's decision and wishes. Having an advance directive can ease prolonging treatment in some of the extreme cases where the patient has lost his ability to communicate with family or a caregiver. I think that it is a good idea for a senior citizen to have something on their person that allows others to find out information about them, whether it is an identification band like Medic Alert, or even a pendant with a contact information source on it. It is so sad that many times my office receives bodies because the person did not have a personal physician to relate their medical history to us. The advance directive, when properly filled out and witnessed, should be followed by health professionals. A form can be obtained from your personal attorney, hospitals or even in an office supply store. You want to make sure to have the document notarized or give it to someone in a position of authority or a confidante so that it can be found when necessary. Death with dignity is important to most patients, especially if they do not want heroic measures used when they lose their ability to communicate, cannot control their PHOENIX Of ALPHA SIGMA AI.PIIA
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