Doctor seeks better process for discussing end-of-life care | Geelong Advertiser

 "The senior doctor fought for his elderly father’s right to a peaceful and dignified death free from intervention that could prolong suffering in an attempt to add a little more time to an ailing life.



A clinician accustomed to dealing with death, Dr ­Orford’s battle for “patient-centred” care in an interstate hospital was eye opening ­despite his expertise.


His family’s quest to speak to the doctors who mattered took days, and they were told staff would apply full resuscitation despite his father’s rapid mental and physical decline. Referral to a palliative care team took more than a week.



“If someone had ­approached us and said, ‘Your father has advanced dementia, this is probably his last year of life, he’s confused and distressed and you're confused and distressed, can we talk,’ it would have made such a difference,” Dr Orford said.

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Doctor seeks better process for discussing end-of-life care | Geelong Advertiser



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