Hospice takes stand against physician-aided suicide

In an effort to correct that misconception, The Community Hospice recently issued a "statement on physician-assisted suicide." The five-paragraph statement outlines The Community Hospice's mission and values.

Excerpts from the statement include:

* "Hospice does not support or provide any form of euthanasia or assisted suicide. Rather, through aggressive interventions to address fear, pain, depression, spiritual isolation and other symptoms, Hospice views itself as an alternative to euthanasia and assisted suicide."

* The Community Hospice believes in "commitment to competent care and access to care" for any terminally ill patient.

* "Withholding or withdrawing artificial life support systems, or providing treatment aimed at controlling pain and other symptoms does not constitute euthanasia or assisted suicide. The intent of these acts is to comfort and respect the dignity of the patient, not to end the patient's life."

* "In situations where there is a risk of or a request for suicide, Hospice will not abandon any patient. Rather, we will attempt to address and treat the condition underlying the risk of or request for suicide. Hospice will do everything possible to enhance the comfort and well-being of each patient until death comes naturally."

Mr. DiSorbo hopes that the statement, which has been mailed to state lawmakers, "generates a lot of discussion and interest." He noted that it articulates for the first time The Community Hospice's position on public policy, as well as restating that "withholding life support is not euthanasia. Aggressive pain control is not euthanasia, either."

Most significantly, he said, the statement makes it clear that in the dying process, "people do get depressed, [but] we're not going to abandon people."

In his 19 years as a Hospice employee, Mr. DiSorbo has most often found that "people beg for life; they don't beg for death. Yes, there have been a couple of suicides in Hospice, but that's out of hundreds of thousands of cases. People beg for life."

Hospice workers would like to see access to Hospice care become a mandated part of health insurance coverage in New York State, he said. He also hopes that patients will be allowed longer stays in Hospice in the future: "We're getting people on the brink of death. The average stay [in Hospice] is 15 days. We used to have people for a few months."

In issuing the new statement, Mr. DiSorbo said The Community Hospice hopes to issue a message, as well: "Dying is a normal, natural process. Everybody deserves the most dignified end-of-life process as possible."

(Mr. DiSorbo is presently joining 11 other health professionals from New York State in a trip to Africa to consult with three Hospice programs there. Look for coverage of that trip in a future issue of The Evangelist.)

(06-10-99) [[In-content Ad]]