Sunday 20 October 2013

Liverpool Care Pathway - The Life Intolerable

The life intolerable...
No Board, no doctor, no official appointed by Governor or Government may decide or determine this.


Polio took her brother; then, she, too, succumbed to the infection.

Martha Mason became paralysed at just eleven years old. Doctors predicted she would live a year at most and sent her home. She lived a further 61 years.

This is the Mail Online

Those who have written about her life say her curiosity and desire to live as normal life as possible were the key to her longevity. 

Despite her being in a situation most people would consider horrific, Ms Mason, who was born in 1937 and lived in Lattimore, North Carolina, graduated from high school with the highest hours and hosted dinner parties. 
She later achieved her lifetime ambition of writing a book thanks to voice recognition software.
Friend, Mary Dalton:
'She told me that she survived for so many years – while so many others with the same disease died – because of the exceptional care she received from her parents and community, and because she has always been driven to learn.'

It should be a no-brainer, but a recent study published in the Lancet actually does confirm this to be the case, that better care means better outcomes.

This is Lady Jane Campbell –
"If I should ever seek death - there are several times when my progressive condition challenges me - I want to guarantee that you are there supporting my continued life and its value. The last thing I want is for you to give up on me, especially when I need you most."
Encourage hope where there is desolation; provide support where despond crushes and overwhelms...
Sometimes in our lives
We all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there's
Always tomorrow
Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
     Bill Withers - Lean On Me

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