Lawmakers are killing elderly - they may as well make it legal

[flashl]

Mike Thomas | COMMENTARY

It is time to legalize euthanasia in Florida.

The old and frail in nursing homes should have the option of a dignified and painless death versus what the politicians in Tallahassee have in store for them.

Florida's nursing homes were once among the nation's worst. A 2001 report in the Orlando Sentinel detailed horrendous abuses such as sexual assaults, improper medical treatment and negligence often leading to premature deaths.

One patient was left to drown in a bathtub. One was left on a toilet seat for three hours, causing the incision for a hip replacement to tear open.

Bedsores were allowed to fester, eating away at skin and muscle, uncovering bone.

Such negligence created a malpractice-insurance crisis. The industry complained of frivolous lawsuits, but the evidence was clear: Homes with the lowest staff levels and worst health inspections attracted the most litigation.

...

Most nursing-home patients are on Medicaid, a program funded by federal and state government. Neither contributes enough to fully pay for patient care, which means nursing homes lose about $12 a day on each Medicaid patient.

...

Those who wind up in nursing homes often are the worst cases, the very old and very sick, people who have no families, or who have families who don't care or families that don't have the resources to cope with disabilities such as dementia.

When they suffer, it truly is a silent scream.

Orlando Sentinel

[MADem]

1. The CRIME of America. You know a nation by how they treat the least of their brethren.

The aged, the infirm, the children, the hungry, the sick, the needy.

This kind of shit makes me sick.

Only thing is, if euthanizing had to be done, I'd prefer to euthanize the bastards who enable this kind of crap. Let that old person with the shaky Parkinsonian hand hit the button on 'em.

It might correct the attitude of the next bunch responsible for patient care.

[patrice]

2. This is what we are doing about this problem:

http://www.jcnc.info/

and we are moving in this direction: http://www.ncbcapitalimpact.org/default.aspx?id=146

I am very motivated.

:bounce:

[flashl]

3. Good to hear!

[patrice]

4. It's also good to have work that you actually Care about.

Our nursing home also serves mostly the poor and disabled. People who would, otherwise, be dying in the streets.

I've been in a few other nursing homes lately because of my mother-in-law and, where ours isn't like the expensive ones, it IS very very nice and homey. We teach and promote Person Centered Culture Change to all levels of long-term care staff all across the state, with special focus on promoting Professionalism amongst the "lowest" staff members, the Certified Nursing Assistants.

[struggle4progress]

5. Hey, look! the Republicans finally have a plan to reduce health-care costs!

[bobthedrummer]

6. Sure isn't any coincidence anymore that this criminal administration follows the NAZI examples

in so many "policies", especially eugenics and death by denial of services. The leading politicized profession of NAZI members was the medical, the second leading NAZI politicized professional membership was the legal.

"January 1, 1934: 'The Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Offspring' took effect" (archived GD thread I started 1-1-2008)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2570336