End-of-Life Care: How Modern Medicine Shapes the Way People Live and Die

Overview

Within just a few decades, the reality of life and death has undergone profound change. Modern medicine’s disease diagnosis and treatment advancements are mostly responsible for the transformations. As a result of the development of treatments for most diseases and ailments, life expectancy has risen and end-of-life care improved by leaps and bounds. There are opportunities to delay death, such as with the use of life support, thanks to technological advances in medicine (Gawande, 2014). Even if there is no treatment for a condition, dying does not have to be accompanied by pain and suffering. According to Saul (2011), the quality of end-of-life care has made even death simpler and more comfortable. In most situations today, death is less sudden and unexpected, allowing patients and their families to prepare for it.

The four Major Causes of Death

There are three categories of reasons for death: natural causes, homicide, accidental death, and suicide. Natural causes include the body ceasing to function on its own or the presence of an underlying condition, such as a disease. Homicide refers to the manner of death that arises from deliberate murder. It occurs when one person takes another’s life. Accidental death is a cause of death other than natural causes, suicide, or homicide; it may include manslaughter. Suicide is the act of taking one’s own life as a result of mental distress or any other psychological factor…