Dying well in nursing homes during COVID-19 and beyond: The need for a relational and familial ethic.
Bioethics
; 35(6): 589-595, 2021 07.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1216725
ABSTRACT
This paper applies a relational and familial ethic to address concerns relating to nursing home deaths and advance care planning during Covid-19 and beyond. The deaths of our elderly in nursing homes during this pandemic have been made more complicated by the restriction of visitors even at the end of life, a time when families would normally be present. While we must be vigilant about preventing unnecessary deaths caused by coronavirus outbreaks in nursing homes, some deaths of our elders are inevitable. Thus, it is essential that advanced care planning occurs in a way that upholds the familial and relational aspects of elders' lives that often matter to them the most. We invoke concepts from feminist ethicists like Hilde Lindemann and Eva Kittay and introduce Avery Weisman and Thomas Hackett's concept of "appropriate death" to suggest better ways of planning for those deaths of our elderly that cannot be avoided. Our hope is to allow for deaths that are as meaningful as possible for both the elderly and the family members who survive them.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Terminal Care
/
Family
/
Family Relations
/
Pandemics
/
COVID-19
/
Homes for the Aged
/
Nursing Homes
Type of study:
Prognostic study
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Bioethics
Journal subject:
Ethics
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
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