In March, GeriPal, a geriatrics and palliative care podcast, invited Hope Wechkin, medical director of EvergreenHealth home hospice, Thaddeus Pope, JD, and Dr. Joshua Briscoe on to discuss ethical issues around using an advanced directive to stop eating and drinking (SED), as well as the topic of voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (VSED) as a potential bridge to access medical aid-in-dying (MAiD).
The discussion centered on several questions:
- For those with an advanced directive to stop eating and drinking, how do we balance caring for their rational past self and their experiential current self?
- Should these patients qualify for medical aid in dying medications?
- Is there a middle path to provide some degree of comfort while also hastening the end of life?
To view the conversation, visit Hastening Death by Stopping Eating and Drinking: Hope Wechkin, Thaddeus Pope, and Josh Briscoe. Or click on the thumbnail below to watch the video directly on YouTube.
