Death and Dying

Question 1

What are some cultural universals in regards to death?

Answer 1

1) All cultures have rituals for death

2) All cultures have religio

Question 2

Theory of Mind

Answer 2

that everyone has a mind and can think (ball in drawer/ then ball under bed ex.)

Question 3

What does developmentalist Paul Bloom theorize about humans and death?

Answer 3

• Humans are natural born duelists (body-soul)

- Humans are wired for religion

Question 4

What was death and dying like in the 17th and 18th century?

Answer 4

• No medicine, ppl died quickly

- Dying was familiar at every stage of life and typical part of the community

Question 5

What was death like in early 20th century?

Answer 5

medicine conquers infectious diseases, moves death to the end of the lifespan

• dying moved to hospitals (far from view)
• dying is a strange, frightening health care managed event

Question 6

When did the death awareness movement occur?

Answer 6

1960s

Question 7

What did the Death Movement consist of?

Answer 7

-talking about death, doctors more forth coming about cancer diagnoses

Question 8

Thanatology

Answer 8

study of death and dying; classes became popular around 60s

Question 9

What are Kubler-Ross’s Stage Theroy of Dying?

Answer 9

1) Denial
2) Anger
3) Bargaining
4) Depression
5) Acceptance

Question 10

What defines a “good death”?

Answer 10

1) After a long life
2) minimal physical distress
3) max psychological security (feel in control)
4) surrounded by loved ones
5) foster spirituality & have sense that there was integrity and purpose to our lives

Question 11

What are the costs of dying in the Health Care System?

Answer 11

1) Monetary- 25% of Medicare spending on 5% of patients in last year of life
2) Emotional

Question 12

Hospice Care

Answer 12

disentangles medicalization and dying and returns death to a natural process.
-inpatient hospice and home hospice

Question 13

What did the study that followed 4,493 Medicare patients with terminal cancer or heart failure show?

Answer 13

There was no difference in survival time between hospice and non-hospice patients.

Question 14

What are the barriers to enroll in Hospice?

Answer 14

• requires physician to certify that person is within 6 months of death
• home hospice requires supportive family (medicare pays only if abandon curative care)

Question 15

Medicare rule blocks simultaneous reimbursement for hospice and skilled nursing facility care results in?

Answer 15

It results in patients receiving more aggressive treatment/hospitalization.

Question 16

Aetna’s experiment?

Answer 16

Allowed group of terminally ill policy holders to receive hospice services without forgoing other treatments.

Question 17

What were the results of Aetna’s experiment?

Answer 17

• enrolled patients more likely to use hospice jump from 26% –> 70%
• those in concurrent care less likely to go to emergency room, I.C.U.’s, ect.
• overall costs fell by 25%

Question 18

How is one way we take control of how we die?

Answer 18

1) Physician-Assisted Suicide

Passive Enthanasia vs Active Enthanasia