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Being Mortal

Medicine and What Matters in the End
Aug 04, 2020Luckybe rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Gawande describes how the medical system has failed those in the final stages of life by using extreme measures to keep people alive regardless of the quality of the life they may be experiencing. He advocates an approach whereby those at the end of existence face their mortality, decide how best to spend the last stretch of time, seek comfort through hospice assistance and spend the remaining time with loved ones rather than in intubation in a sterile hospital. Where this more humane approach is practiced, people die more peacefully, families are less traumatized and the end of life costs to both families and the medical system are halved. This book should be required reading