Hear award-winning journalist Diane Rehm discuss what she learned about Medical Aid in Dying through conversations with people both for and against these laws.
My special guest Diane Rehm was the host of The Diane Rehm Show on WAMU and NPR for nearly 40 years with a weekly on-air audience of more than 2.8 million people. She is the author of 5 best-selling autobiographical book including her latest When My Time Comes: Conversations About Whether Those Who Are Dying Should Have the Right to Determine When Life Should End. She shares her experiences traveling the country and interviewing people about medical aid in dying for the book and the documentary film by the same name. Learn more at these websites:
This episode includes:
- Diane’s journey with her husband John at the end of his life
- Why Diane was inspired to create the documentary (and later the book) When My Time Comes
- How memories of Dr. Kevorkian may still create fear and negativity around this subject
- Lack of joy in life is a more common reason for choosing MAID than physical pain
- Why choosing MAID is different than suicide
- Current facts about Medical Aid in Dying laws in the U.S.
- Common arguments against these laws from religious and disability communities
- Safeguards built into these laws to prevent abuse and coercion
- Patients with Alzheimer’s and other dementias are not eligible for MAID
- This option is not equally available to all groups of people across the country for multiple reasons
- How Brittany Maynard’s story galvanized this movement
- The goal is to allow choice for people at the end of life
Links mentioned in this episode:
- Register for Q&A Session with William Peters on At Heaven’s Door here
- Check out my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/c/eoluniversity
- A Year of Reading Dangerously – Register here
- Compassion and Choices
- Watch When My Time Comes on Amazon Prime
- Leave me a message by email: karen@karenwyattmd.com, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
- Support your local bookstore by buying my books on Bookshop and Indiebound: 7 Lessons for Living from the Dying and The Journey from Ego to Soul
- Subscribe to this podcast on Apple, Google, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Stitcher Radio
- Check out the Series I’ve recorded in the past here
- Join the team at Patreon.com/eolu and get access to the EOLU mug: “Mind if we talk about death?” (only Patrons can purchase it). PLUS get our new bonuses: the monthly EOL News Update, movie reviews from 2 Doctors and a Movie, and automatic access to A Year of Reading Dangerously!
If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, especially my newest patrons Erica Sanchez and Kelly Bean! Your contributions make all the difference.