Introduction
In the TED Talk “Prepare for the Good End of Life,” Judy MacDonald Johnston discusses the process of preparing for one’s death. She argues that this preparation can not only help an individual to pass away without any remaining problems but also preserve the quality of life until the last day. Moreover, MacDonald Johnston suggests several possible steps that can help people to plan for their death. These steps include finding trustworthy people, preparing necessary documents for the hospital, deciding on the receivers of one’s property, letting go, and asking for the last words of reassurance (MacDonald Johnston, 2013). Each step is followed by multiple instructions that help one guarantee the end not to be worrisome.
Main Points
The first step deals with accepting one’s inevitable end. This point is somewhat ambiguous as people can experience different emotions about their death. The plan, suggested by the author, has some unclear aspects as well. While the advice offers some positive reassurance to individuals, it does not have any legal grounds. In her suggestions for this step, MacDonald Johnston mentions that people can and should choose which specific procedures need to be administered to extend their lives. It remains unclear whether medical professionals can use the documents that the author proposes as a confirmation of one’s wishes. However, this information provides clearance to people that are planning for their death. Currently, this topic is not discussed enough for people to behave without creating issues.
Moreover, the following steps deal with preparing information about medical history, which can help nurses and physicians to avoid possible complications. The data that the author suggests to record includes the main health-related issues, currently used medications, allergies, and other points of a medical summary (Good End of Life, 2017). This information can be helpful in case of an emergency. Moreover, it may provide some reassurance to people that have deteriorating health. The psychological well-being of a person who feels ready can be supported by these steps.
One of the steps suggests that people should choose their advocates to assist them in their interaction with medical professionals. This aspect is also interesting as it offers some individuals the ability to distribute some of the authority to other people. However, the legal side of this is undetermined as well. Furthermore, MacDonald Johnston (2013) states that she does not have any experience with this topic other than helping a couple of people that she knows. On the official website of this proposition, she admits that her experience is somewhat insufficient (Good End of Life, 2017). The two people that used her plans were able to afford caregivers and medical help. Sadly, this is not true for everybody. Many people do not have the required financial resources and connections to complete this plan. Additionally, not everybody possesses the state of mind to provide all information in a transparent and trustworthy way. Thus, these guidelines can be followed by a limited range of individuals. The author is open to changing the system to accommodate more people. However, some of the steps can remain hard to follow for many persons.
Conclusion
All in all, the video “Prepare for the Good End of Life” offers some interesting points for people to consider. The author attempts to spread awareness about the steps that may help some persons to prepare for their life’s end. Although some information and advice are not defined well enough, these suggestions can assist both individuals that use the system and medical professionals that treat them. However, the guidelines need further improvement to include persons with different socioeconomic backgrounds.
References
Good End of Life. (2017). About. Web.
MacDonald Johnston, J. (2013). Prepare for a good end of life [Video file]. Web.