“It’s no secret that wage gaps, discrimination and institutional racism limit Black Americans’ access to health equity. However, what’s discussed a lot less frequently is that these factors impact the way this group experiences death, too.”
VSED might not be for everyone, but it is the only chance for some to experience an end to unbearable suffering. Done with careful preparation, medical support, and compassionate caregiving, VSED offers a natural end to life.
In 2019, three community women asked to meet with me about a compelling community education concern. The spouses of these women had all struggled to use the VSED end-of-life option because our county’s only hospital, and associated hospice program, had religious affiliations and, therefore, was unable to support VSED.
After he died, Jean and her sister both looked at one other and said, “That’s how I’m going to die.”
“Death would not be called bad, O people, if one knew how to truly die.”
— Nanak
“We reached the goal for patients like me, who aren’t terminal but degenerative, to win this battle, a battle that opens the doors for the other patients who come after me.”
Your emotional reaction to a dread disease diagnosis can have major implications for whether your treatment preferences will be accepted.
Patients may not be aware that their health care system is faith-based, and rarely understand the restrictions that their health systems have implemented — until they need this care.
