Expert: Paula Damgaard - 4/2/2008

Question
Am 88 I have too many Alzheimers friends sitting mindlessly in chairs or beds ruining the minds and strength and fortunes of thier relatives and heirs. I feel some very vague symptoms and have written a living will to avoid that. It directs the if I become terminal from any disease I verbally or by my proxy order that I no longer take food or fluid.The law says that any competent person hs the right to stop eating or drinking even if such action has fatal consequences.I beleive (and this is my question) that an Alzheimers patient become terminal when he can no longer carry on a conversation or sign a legal document. That is when my proxy would order above. A big survey of nurses, mostly Mediare certified Hospice, (307 out of 429 answred). A spokesman Dr. Bill Zepf said "The patients who choose the option to hasten death usually die within 2 weeks with low level levels of suffering and pain and good overall quality of death".How can I pursuade my hesitant doctor that he should act on my definition  of "terminal' if you agree.An aruments or reference you can suggest?
Thank you
Bill

Answer
Hi  Bill, I absolutely agree with you.  Tell him to go to any nursing home and see the patients there that are in end stage dementia.  Tell him that you do NOT want to get there.  When my mother had AD, we as a family decided that she would not receive anymore medications once she was admitted to a home.  She entered the home, able to walk, talk, know us.  But we stopped them regardless.  We knew she had bad lungs (she had smoked 50+ years) and that she was prone to pneumonia every year.  Pneumonia used to be the elderlys best friend til we started medicating with the high power drugs we now have making people live even longer.  Which is a good thing if you have all your marbles!  Anyway, she got pneumonia and died PEACEFULLY four days later.  Best decision we ever made.  My mother would not have wanted to be sitting around "mindless" as you describe.  

I say if you can't get him to agree to your wishes find another doctor.  You must remember that doctors take an oath to "make people well"  to fix them.  So that is why he hesitates.  If you can't get him to change switch!  

I hope this helps you.  Good luck with your quest.  I admire a person who knows what he wants.  I wish more did!  Take care Paula