Every life is precious, so treat them like they are.

If you have been following my previous blog posts, you would know that the focus of my past posts were patients who had little control over their autonomy and how doctors should find a way to help these patients become eligible to practice their autonomy such as providing free clinics to homeless people and helping alcoholics become sober. In today’s post, I will change my focus to the benefits of allowing patients to make their own choices while also preserving the active approach that doctors have with the homeless people and alcoholics. In today’s practice, more and more doctors are moving toward a patient-centered approach that focuses on giving patients independence. In other words, doctors want to give all of the responsibility to the patient. This has really helped doctors avoid losing money to lawsuits but does little to help patient’s physical wellbeing. Doctors are able to objectively present the patients option but this has proven to not be sufficient to help a patient make a decision. Without relaying personal experience or skillset to the patient, the patient are still left too limited when trying to make the best decision for him or herself. Unless the doctor and patient get to a personal level, there is no way that the two can understand each other completely. It is true that it is up to the patient to make a decision but it is also the responsibility of the doctor to make sure the patient make the right decision. For instance, let’s say there is a patient that is on the verge of dying from an ailment that can easily be cured. However, due to the profuse amount of pain he has been going through because of the ailment he wants to just let it take his life. Let’s also say that this gentleman is elderly and have also seen many of his friends and other loved ones pass away so he feels like it is his time to go. However, in the medical standpoint, this man is completely healthy and looks like he can keep living for a few more years. If the doctors were to follow the patient-centered approach, he or she would just follow the patient’s wishes and let the patient die. It is highly unethical to let someone that can be saved die because of his or her ignorance. No one really knows when they want to die until they are at death’s footsteps. At that moment is when they realize that there is so much more life ahead of them. Instead, what doctors should be doing is talking to the patient and consoling them. They need to learn about the patient social life to better assist the patient. The patient really do not know what is best when they are under a traumatic stress state and it is up to the doctor to be as therapeutic as they can be and allow the patient time to reconsider their choice. Doctors should be more active in their engagement with the patient and show their patient that they are people too. Doctors should share their past experience with the issue, show the patients sympathy, and let the patient know that the doctor’s best interest is the well-being of the patient, both mentally and physically. If, at the end of all of the consultation, the patient still wishes to pass on life saving procedures, then the doctors can continue with letting the patient do as he or she wishes. However, even this is not an easy call to make because it takes a lot of medication for a patient to be let go comfortably, i.e. doping the patient with morphine so he or she will die high. So, both option of letting a patient die and saving a patient life is complicated. However, the latter option presents the most reward if the patient life can truly be saved without causing further complication.