A fire has been lit in my belly. It regards a topic that I feel extremely passionate about: giving up, doing nothing and rolling over.

Here’s my warning to you, this article may not be as positive as some of my previous posts. I’m going to approach a topic which will no doubt bring up some negative emotions, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, I want you to be angry with me. Hopefully then we will, as a collective, contribute to a change in attitude.

The treatment of terminal conditions is undoubtedly a horrible process, one which is associated with feelings of sadness, anger, pain and often submission. It is completely understandable and as with most of the population I have experienced situations where I’ve had to accept the deterioration in the health of a family member, ultimately leading to death, and whilst I feel sad about the loss I also feel extremely angry.

In the opinion of many, during the final decline in health experienced prior to death nothing can be done. B****** to that!

THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING TO BE DONE.

The way in which we as people deal with traumatic events varies and should never be criticized, for it is natural. However it appears that often the health service amongst others seem to forget about the individual in question during their decline. Not in terms of physically but in terms of emotionally.

To prevent the misinterpretation of my thoughts I will speak personally to portray my feelings on a subject I feel so passionately about. When my life is ultimately about to come to an end I’m going to do my best to view the situation as an opportunity, I’m going to go out doing things I enjoy to do, being positive throughout and I’d like my psychological health to be of primary focus.

My gripe is not with the medical treatment as such, it’s more of an issue with responsibility. It seems that the current opinion is that once all options have been exhausted in prolonging life it is no longer the responsibility of the current medical system to promote the happiness (I understand that the description of happiness in such a situation may come across as strange to some, but please remember I am talking personally) of the individual in question.

Regardless of the situation there is always something that can be done to improve well-being and quality of life, true optimal treatment within the health care system will never be experienced until individual preference and the consideration of ‘happiness’ is a primary objective. Ultimately, life will come to an end and you’re truly mistaken if I’m going to go out with a whimper.

The long term care revolution has begun, change is upon us, here’s to more holistic management of health and well-being.

Jack Barton (Researcher, Rescon Ltd)