In search of a good death: A good death and medicalisation need not be  polarised

doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7408.224-d

BMJ 2003;327:224-225 (26 July), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7408.224-d

Letter

In search of a good death

A good death and medicalisation need not be polarised

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—Clarke warns against the medicalisation of dying when medicine and technology overstep the boundaries of thebody or when palliative care focuses on symptom management.¹This can be a reality but depends on the healthcare provider,such as when death is resisted—when it is inevitableor when technology is lengthening the dying process as opposedto providing a good death.

The Death of Socrates by Jacques-LouisDavid, 1787

Credit: WOLFE COLLECTION, METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OFART, NY

Healthcare providers need to be cognisant of the importanceof caring for the body holistically, and not just focusingon the corporeal needs. Symptom management is an essentialpart of palliative care, but the heart of palliative care isthe dying person.

Innovations have greatly affected the dying process—providingthe dying person with options and control. Nevertheless, healthcareproviders do impart a technological realism. They are the expertson medicine and technology, . . . [Full text of this article]

Jen L Lapum, PhD student, faculty of nursing, University of Toronto

University Health Network, 200 Elizabeth Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5G 2C4 j.lapum@utoronto.ca