The Contribution of Demoralization to End of Life Decisionmaking

Author: David W. Kissane

Source: Hastings Center Report, July-August 2004 , pp. 21-31(11)

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Abstract:

Some psychiatrists believe that "demoralization syndrome" is a diagnosable cognitive disorder characterized in its extreme form by morbid existential distress. If they are right, then it should be an important part of our thinking about end of life decisionmaking. A demoralized patient would be unable to think reliably about the remainder of her life, and therefore incompetent to decide to commit physician-assisted suicide.

Document Type: Research article

Publication date: 2004-07-01

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The Hastings Center Report explores the ethical, legal, and social issues in medicine, health care, public health, and the life sciences. Six issues are published each year, containing an assortment of essays, columns on legal and policy developments, case studies of issues in clinical care and institutional administration, caregivers' stories, peer-reviewed scholarly articles, and book reviews. Authors come from an assortment of professions and academic disciplines and bring a range of perspectives and political opinions. We welcome submissions from new authors. The Report's readership includes physicians, nurses, scholars of many stripes, administrators, social workers, health lawyers, and others.
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