Doctors in America and Britain continue with the debate on whether or not a patient should be made aware that he's dying.
In earlier times, American doctors took it upon themselves to decide whether or not to tell a patient about his/her terminal diagnosis. Now things are different. Studies conducted in recent times have proved that when a patient is told about a terminal diagnosis, it affects his psychological strength, which in turn may affect the treatment process. Hence, now doctors in America and Britain are currently debating on whether a patient should be made aware that he's dying or not.
The latest evidence of this discussion was published in the British Medical Journal. Many palliative care doctors are of the opinion that when a patient is aware that he is going to die, he has the option of forgoing costly and invasive tests and procedures. He also gets to make good use of his last few days and has time to say his goodbyes and die a peaceful death.
"Knowledge is power," write Drs. Emily Collis and Katherine E. Sleeman, both palliative care specialists in Britain's National Health System.
However, other doctors are of the opinion that there have been surprising findings that "terminal" patients actually live longer, on average, when they get palliative care, possibly because they get off the risky and intensive "curative treatment" treadmill and focus on comfort and quality of life.
"Does telling someone that they are terminally ill mean telling them how long they have to live? (hard to know for any individual)," writes Dr. Leslie J. Blackhall, a palliative care specialist at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. "Does it mean telling them that they will eventually die (true for all of us)? Does it mean telling them there is 'nothing we can do' (never true)?" Blackhall writes. And at exactly what point in a protracted illness for which there is little prospect of a cure does a physician declare a patient "terminal," she wonders.
