What is good care at the end-of-life, and how can we do better as a society?
This is the question that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) is now studying, and they have created a “Committee on Approaching Death: Addressing Key End-of-Life Issues.”
As part of their research into the current state of end-of-life care, the IOM is inviting the public to send them comments via this online comments page. (Comments must be submitted by November 1st, 2013.)
In particular, the IOM wants to hear about the following topics:
- Barriers to and opportunities for improving care for individuals and their families,
- Patient and family experiences with care, and
- Health care provider experiences.
Now, as you can imagine, addressing end-of-life issues is a big part of what we do in geriatrics. Furthermore, I’m thrilled to see the IOM addressing this issue, since their reports are highly respected and often end up influencing policy and funding.
So I was very glad to provide some comments to the IOM, and encourage others — family caregivers, geriatric care managers, clinicians, or really anyone who has had personal experiences with end-of-life situations in the US — to submit comments as well.
The best reports, after all, result from the academics’ expert opinions being informed by the experiences of those of us in the trenches, trying to navigate real end-of-life situations.
My comments on Better End-of-Life Care for Older Adults
Below, I share the comments that I’m submitting in response to the IOM’s questions.
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