Death and Dignity: Making Choices and Taking Charge, by Timothy E. Quill, M.D. (TPB, 1994, $1)
Some of you will not know about Dr. Quill. In 1991 he introduced us, in an article in the New England Journal of Medicine, to his patient Diane, a woman diagnosed with leukemia, whose "bone pain, weakness, fatigue, and fevers began to dominate her life." She realized there was no way for her to maintain her independence, her dignity, and her comfort, so she decided to die, using barbiturates. Dr. Quill prescribed them for his terminal patient, and she died peacefully. Why does he write the article, which will leave him accused of manslaughter? (When his case was presented to a grand jury, though, they refused to charge him.) Says Dr. Quill, he wanted "to challenge the medical profession to take a more personal, in-depth look at end-of-life suffering.... I knew that untreatable suffering prior to death is unfortunately not rare..." He wanted us to start pondering end-of-life issues.You may not agree with what he did. You may even feel very strongly that what he and his patient did was terribly wrong, or even a sin. Still, reading this book may help you understand why Diane did what she did, and why he helped. No matter what you believe, both Dr. Quill's actions and his later publishing of Diane's story led to much discussion, which was what he hoped for all along.
Look for this book in the medical section. (Enclosed at the end of the book are sample living will and health care proxy forms, which allow you to let your family and medical providers know what your wishes are regarding end-of-life issues.)
