This commentary is pretty much everything I've said here about practicing medicine

[Dinner]

That is not ****ing cool. I ****ing hate people who do that.

I bet they'd stop visiting as much though.

[MRT144]

Sava's "debate" style:

1) post something idiotic
2) get called an idiot
3) claim victory

I've spent a grand total of 2 minutes replying to you, ****. WTG

4 minutes

[loinburger]

Heard today on the radio: "On average, hospice care increases a patient's life by 29 days!!! Huzzah for hospice care!!!"

This has to be one of the most depressing things I've ever heard. Don't get me wrong, I'm not inherently opposed to hospices - if they'd said "On average, hospice care decreases a patient's rating on the pain scale by 6 points!!!" or whatever then I'd say "**** yeah, hospice care!" However, they way they worded it is incredibly ****ed up.

[loinburger]

Also, to head off any "but loin, blah blah blah hypocrisy" crap, my living will says "no stupid life extension bull****." Also, if you think that 29 days of added life when dying from cancer is a Good Thing, well, sorry, but you're clinically stupid. I mean, Kidicious levels of stupidity.

[giblets]

Obviously it's better than the lake of fire you'll be going to when you die, stupidhead! /Kidicious

[Dr Strangelove]

Heard today on the radio: "On average, hospice care increases a patient's life by 29 days!!! Huzzah for hospice care!!!"

This has to be one of the most depressing things I've ever heard. Don't get me wrong, I'm not inherently opposed to hospices - if they'd said "On average, hospice care decreases a patient's rating on the pain scale by 6 points!!!" or whatever then I'd say "**** yeah, hospice care!" However, they way they worded it is incredibly ****ed up.

Hospice care isn't really about life extension generally, it's usually intended to make a dying person's last few days more comfortable than it would be at home and to take the strain of caring for a very sick, dying relative off the hands of the family. Many of these people still receive complicated care even though they're no longer receiving potentially curative therapies. Having the basic care handled by professionals undoubtedly does prolong their lives a few weeks.

[Jon Miller]

If I had 'weeks' to live, I would want to have a party and then rent some place in the mountains to be alone for a couple weeks. I would expect to live (a lot) less time.

JM

[Dr Strangelove]

The people who go to hospice are often barely able to lift their heads off their pillows. They're generally long past wanting to party. Their idea of party is an extra push of the button on the morphine drip machine.

[Jon Miller]

Yeah, then shoot me full of morphine and leave me outside in a blizzard. Or give me a lethal injection.

JM

[Elok]

There's also the question of finding people who would enjoy partying with the terminally ill. "Wooooo, I got a tumor the size of a golf ball in my brain, mother****ers! Ooops, I just threw up. Is it the booze or the chemo? It's both! Dude, check out my skin, it, like, matches the wallpaper. Doesn't the constant presence of a withered memento mori in a wheelchair really make you wanna cut loose?"

[DaShi]

Or you could go on a chemo rampage.

[Elok]

1. Take radiation therapy
2. Go to rave as a living glowstick
3. Blow everybody's freakin' mind

[loinburger]

A friend of mine had radiation/chemo therapy (the cancer is in remission now so I'm allowed to repeat this anecdote without feeling guilty), and said the worst part was that her eyelashes fell out and her eyes were constantly assailed by dust motes. I'm not saying that she wouldn't have survived at a rave, but she probably would have needed goggles.