What is Medical Aid in Dying?
Medical Aid in Dying provides adults who have a terminal illness and verification from two physicians that they have less than six months to live, the opportunity to receive a prescription for medication that they can self-ingest to voluntarily end their lives.
Several states and districts in the United States have legislation or voters’ approval to provide their residents the option to choose an aid-in-dying option; however, each one has slightly differing procedures to access and administer aid-in-dying medications. These create nuanced barriers, challenges, and opportunities for those who are terminally ill and their caregivers.
The aim of our research project is to gather narratives from terminally ill people who have qualified for medical aid in dying and their caregivers to raise awareness about decision-making surrounding the option to choose when to self-administer the medications and how to prepare for their final days of life. We will also discover how interactions with medical providers and social support systems both hinder and support choice and high quality end of life. Lastly, we will gather an understanding of how caregivers approach and cope with loss and grief.
There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you