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momo916's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
Anyone with an elder in their life right now probably knows how fraught the experience of navigating end of life can be. Gowande alternates between history and narrative to paint a picture of how we find ourselves making choices for ourselves and for our loved ones that result in the protraction of pain and suffering leading up to death. The book discusses the challenges everyone involved faces, including doctors, patients, and the family members who are often forced to make the final call. If I have any complaints, it’s that the prescription for this societal ill is, essentially, "talking it out," which seems to be the same thing we hear in response to most societal ills and which also has yet to really solve anything. I would have liked to hear more about the role, if any, that health insurance companies and fear of litigation play regarding the choices doctors make around testing and operating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content
Moderate: Suicide
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