Recently in in the News Category

Washington State reported its first assisted suicide this week. A 66 year old pancreatic cancer sufferer took advantage of the state's new Death with Dignity law; Sandi Doughton reports for the Seattle Times. Read the article.

The New York Times reported on a group of cutthroat card players in a Laguna Woods, CA retirement community that are putting their sharp minds to work. The best of them exhibiting no dementia loss. Is there a correlation between competitive bridge and mental acuity? Read the article.

I wrote my sister, Kathleen:

Sometime recently didn't the subject of assisted suicide come up? Or was I telling you of the recent LA Times story, see below. Anyway, put that new iPhone to good use and check out Philosophy Bites, podcasts of top philosophers interviewed on bite-sized topics. They did a beautiful 13min show on assisted dying; I can't stop thinking about it.

Then last week, the LA Times did a piece on assisted suicide in Washington State. Written from the perspective of the grown children caring for their father in his final days, they describe rural doctors that are unwilling to write prescriptions for those suffering terminal illnesses, even though it's legal to do so. These doctors are concerned about acting "against their conscience". Meanwhile Stephen Wallace, a pancreatic cancer sufferer, dies in agony.

The health care monitors that have been mentioned here over the last month are now the catalyst for G.E. and Intel to join forces to provide technology to facilitate seniors aging safely and effectively in their homes. Yesterday they announced a joint $250 million R&D effort to promote remote monitoring. G.E. has the sales force and Intel has the 2-way video monitor which will be the device used to allow doctors and clinicians to track their aging patients.

John Leland in the New York Times reports today that,

"many older people who live alone are not truly alone. They are being watched by a flurry of new technologies designed to enable them to live independently and avoid expensive trips to the emergency room or nursing homes".

The article features eNeighbor, a device that allows elders to live at home yet be safely monitored, which "comes with great promise of improved care at lower cost and the backing of large companies like Intel and General Electric".

Read the article.