Patients and families sometimes worry that opioids such as morphine will speed up the dying process.Īlthough studies show that terminally ill patients typically decline because of the illness with or without the morphine, some people still believe that morphine hastens death due to respiratory depression. Morphine may be used to control pain or shortness of breath throughout an illness or at the end of life. In such situations, especially when hospice or palliative care is involved, health care workers will aggressively pursue comfort with all of the urgency and expertise possible, and this could involve administering morphine. Sometimes, however, an individual may be in chronic pain and unique circumstances may result in increasing pain in the last weeks of life. Our energy decreases, our alertness decreases, and we tend to rest and sleep more. Perhaps this decrease in pain is because the dying process is one of shutting down, not escalation. One study of patients with advanced cancer showed that the prevalence of pain actually decreased from 52% about 6 weeks before death to 30% in the last week of life. If pain has been present but manageable, it will most likely continue to be manageable rather than escalate out of control in the final days. If pain has not been present, it is unlikely to develop near end-of-life.
#Does giving someone morphine hasten death full
While it is true that pain is a common symptom in advanced illness and merits the full attention and expertise of health care providers, for many, it tends to behave consistently throughout an illness. Understandably, it is common to be concerned that pain will steadily worsen and be poorly controlled as death nears. Pain is one of the more common symptoms experienced by those living with serious illness. The question is… is pain worse as we near death and does the administration of morphine in any way hasten death? Opioids, especially morphine, remain the treatment of choice for relieving severe pain, and high-dose morphine is sometimes used in end-of-life care. Pain management is a key issue in increasing the quality of life of patients with a terminal illness, and it is one of the most important goals of both palliative and hospice care. Can I indicate in my own Advance Directive whether or not to use morphine if I decide it’s a bad idea for my mother? Thanks for your help!Ī. Does morphine hasten death? I want my mother to be comfortable, but I have heard stories about it from friends in similar situations and I’m concerned about making the wrong decision. I have heard that hospice often involves administering morphine to the patient to make them more comfortable. Her condition has gotten worse and hospice has been suggested.
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