esrosedotblog

911 REDUX

Yesterday, I wrote about 911 and living wills.

No not that 9-11; this 911, right here on the phone.

I guess I need to explain a bit.

The thing about dialing 911 is that you are asking for extraordinary measures of medical care. They will apply the paddles. They will load you with chemicals. They will take you to an ER where, yet again, the people are paid to use extraordinary measures.

None of these people, thus far, are interested, nor need they be interested, in reading your Living Will. You called them. You get what you asked for.

Now, when you get out of the ER or ICU and upstairs at the hospital, you may already be on a respirator and an eating tube. Whip out your Living Will. It will take several levels of influence to get you off the life support. If you want to be off it.

So there is this huge grey area. Gray? (Answers.com says either! New to me).

Obviously, if you are in an auto accident and your chest is bust and your legs are fucked up but you are breathing and conscious you probably want them to use all their skill to take care of you. If, on the other hand, you are 90 years old and they have come to resuscitate you three times and your spouse or other keeps calling 911, tell him or her to stop the fucking calls!

Same is if you are in some terminal disease and you want to die at home. Stick with it, as grisly as it may be. Don't call 911. They will take you to the land of extraordinary measures.

One of the keys to this whole thing is the advent of hospice care. If you are pretty ill and it looks like it is curtains, sign up for hospice and none of this will be done. Period. When the person gets real sick you call hospice and let them decide. You will get to stay at home as long as the other people at home can stand you and the mess. If you have to go to other care, it will be hospice. They will support you dying.

I just thought it was interesting that the first impulse when someone is down is to call 911. You might restrain yourself and think it through before you do and consider what the person who is down might want. Not even if the EMT guy is as pretty as this one. Nice smile. They are all smiling. Hey, we're dyin' here! Sober up.