‘The day I meet you in the emergency department will probably be one of the worst of your life’
Conversations about end-of-life care are very difficult but very important. When I was working in Older Adult Mental Health, most of my patients were not physically unwell, but many were no longer in a position to make their own decisions about their care. The stress and strain on the families involved was never easy for anyone. If advanced decisions had not been made, sometimes the Family Court had to be involved. But normally, decisions did not have to be made quickly. I can only imagine how much more tension there would be when someone is medically unwell and similar, or harder, decisions have to be made. I think we should all read this article by Dr Ash Witt. It is far better that we read this conversation when we are in a good position to think about the implications, than to meet her, or one of her colleagues to have this conversation unprepared.
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