When I published Notes from the Waiting Room: Managing a Loved One’s End of Life Hospitalization in 2008 I included a chapter with proposals for medical system reform. Among them was something I called Communication Algorithms: Physician-scientists are trained in and use “decision trees” to arrive at diagnoses. The series of if/else questions is referred […]
Clearing the Forest, Seeing the Trees
Yesterday Terry Gross (Fresh Air on NPR radio stations) hosted Dr. Robert Martensen, a well-rounded ED doc and bioethicist who’s authored a book about reforming how we approach dying and death: A Life Worth Living. Having read an array of books on end-of-life matters including a number by providers, Dr. R’s comments and viewpoints are […]