Share

Seniors and Their Doctors

Wednesday 14 October 2009

by: NOW, t r u t h o u t | Programming Note

photo
A woman lies in a hospital following surgery. (Photo: Old Shoe Woman / flickr)

    See last weekend's "NOW" on PBS, which explored the truth behind charges of "death panels."

    "Death Panel? Life Panel?" What exactly is a death panel? The truth about end-of-life planning.

    See the entire show RIGHT NOW.

    On Friday, October 16, at 8:30 PM (check local listings), learn how private discussions between seniors and their doctors about end-of-life choices for the very ill or dying become a flash point in the national health care debate.

    "NOW" travels to Wisconsin to sit in on some of these sessions and see how health care reform could profoundly affect the lives of American seniors.

    The not-for-profit Gundersen Lutheran Hospital has two decades of experience in this area. Their "Respecting Choices" initiative has become one of the most comprehensive end-of-life-planning programs in the country. Two families grappling with the most difficult and complex life-and-death issues gave "NOW" on PBS extraordinary access to their discussions and their decisions.

    The "NOW" web site will feature information about living wills, how your state regulates them and some vital precautions about using them.

  

»

Comments

This is a moderated forum.  It may take a little while for comments to go live. Be civil and on-topic, don't threaten or advocate violence, please keep it under 300 words. Thanks for participating.

related: notive how the New

 Thu, 10/15/2009 - 06:17 — Anonymous (not verified)
related: notive how the New York Times crafts its article headlines Re: health care, who writes those headlines, the RNC? Wellpoint? Example: (today's NYT website): "Public Option Is Next Big Hurdle in Health Debate By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG " This headline casts the public option in the light of an obstacle!

This is, indeed, a valuable

 Thu, 10/15/2009 - 19:30 — Stephen R. Keister M.D. (not verified)
This is, indeed, a valuable service. In very rare instances television can work to educate rather than dumbing down the populace as it does 98% of the time. Foregive me, I make exception for the 6-10 PM slots on MSNBC on weeknights and Bill Moyers on PBS on Fridays. As a retired physician I am appalled at the lack of information that is available to the general public re advance directives and powers-of-attorney for health care that is available, and the disregard for action amongst the folks who are informed. If the nations health care was not controlled by corporate interests perhaps, just perhaps, the American citizen would arise to the challange and do something productive auch as demanding single payer, universal care, as Tommy Douglas did some 50 years ago in Canada. It is interesting that in a poll done by the CBC that Douglas, father of state sponsored health care in Canada, was voted the most outstanding Canadian of all time ! Imagine.....