WWTMHJW@heitue5.bitnet ("Herman J. Woltring") (01/09/89)
Distribution-File: ageing@irlearn !BIOSCI Ageing Bulletin Board blind-l@uafsysb !Computer use by and for the blind diabetes@irlearn !International Research Project on Diabetes epid-l@qucdn !Topics in Epidemiology and Statistics famcomm@rpicicge !Marital/Family & Relational Communication gerinet@ubvm !Prototype Geriatric Health Care Communication health-l@irlearn !International Discussion on Health Research healthco@rpicicge !Communication in Health/Medical Context ioob-l@uga !Industrial Psychology oncogene@irlearn !BIOSCI Oncogenes Bulletin Board psychnet@finhutc !Psychology Newsletter radsig@uwavm !Radiology Special Interest Group sportpsy@umab !Exercise and Sports Psychology Dear list reader, Since technological reports on care for the elderly are rather rare, I thought that the item quoted below from MBEC News of November 1988 might be worth while disseminating over a number of lists. In The Netherlands, Geriatric Health Care is currently a high priority item with the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. Since I am not a subcriber to most of the lists mentioned above, I'd appreciate to receive any commments by direct email. Sincerely -- dr ir Herman J. Woltring EARN/BITNET/NETNORTH: wwtmhjw@heitue5.bitnet ARPA/Internet: na.woltring@na-net.stanford.edu Biomedical and Health Technology Software Engineering Department Eindhoven University of Technology Philips Medical Systems The Netherlands ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ * * * MBEC News item on Elderly and Life Saving in USA * * * Life-saving and the elderly American Life-sustaining treatments, their effects on the patient and family, and the medical, ethical and legal considerations involving the use or non-use of such treatments has been analysed in 'Final report: life-sustaining technologies and the elderly' (PB87-222527), from the US Government's National Technical Infor- mation Service. In addition to the final report are the working papers which deal with five particular life-sustaining technologies and their use with elderly people, al- though much of the information is applicable to people of all ages: 'Volume 1 Working papers: The technologies, Part 1' (PB88-150164); 'Volume 2 Working pa- pers: The technologies, Part 2' (PB88-150156); 'Volume 3 Working papers: Legal and ethical issues, manpower and training, and classification systems for deci- sion making' (PB88-106214); 'Volume 4 Working papers: Use of life-sustaining technologies in other countries' (PB87-234571) and finally 'Philoaophical, le- gal, and social aspects of surrogate decisionmaking for elderly individuals' (PB87-34134). This report and the working papers were prepared for the Senate Special Committee on Aging, which requested a 'thorough review of the ethical dilemma's concerning life-and-death decisions that are faced by health-care practitioners, elderly patients themselves, and concerned family members', issues covered in- clude 'financial access' to life-sustaining technologies and the 'right to choose'. [From Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing News, No. 6, November 1988, p. N6 "Publications"]