Correction: An International Consensus Definition of the Wish to Hasten Death and Its Related Factors

Background A desire for hastened death is commonly expressed by cancer patients. Although efforts to define and explore this issue have been undertaken, no standardized approach exists to address these desires. Case description Ms. J expressed a wish for accelerated death and subsequently experienced unexpected clinical decline resulting in a quick, natural death. Our team experienced a mixture of both emotional distress and awe after witnessing the pragmatic approach our patient had to her impending decline, that we felt was worthy of further exploration. Conclusion Most clinicians lack formal training in communication, potentially making cases like Ms. J’s highly distressing. Clinicians should feel comfortable addressing and potentially inquiring about patients’ desire to hasten death. While our initial reaction might be to correct this desire, we propose reframing this expression as an opportunity to explore more about our patients.

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The ‘Wish to Die’ in later life: prevalence, longitudinal course and mortality. Data from TILDA

Briggs

Ward

Kenny

2021

Age and Ageing

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Background ‘Wish to Die’ (WTD) involves thoughts of or wishes for one’s own death or that one would be better off dead. Objective To examine the prevalence, longitudinal course and mortality-risk of WTD in community-dwelling older people. Design Observational study with 6-year follow-up. Setting The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing, a nationally representative cohort of older adults. Subjects In total, 8,174 community-dwelling adults aged ≥50 years. Methods To define WTD, participants were asked: ‘In the last month, have you felt that you would rather be dead?’ Depressive symptoms were measured using the CES-D. Mortality data were compiled by linking administrative death records to individual-level survey data from the study. Results At Wave 1, 3.5% of participants (279/8,174) reported WTD. Both persistent loneliness (OR 5.73 (95% CI 3.41–9.64)) and depressive symptoms (OR 6.12 (95% CI 4.33–8.67)) were independently associated with WTD. Of participants who first reported WTD at Wave 1 or 2, 72% did not report WTD when reassessed after 2 years, and the prevalence of depressive symptoms (−44%) and loneliness (−19%) was more likely to decline in this group at follow-up. Fifteen per cent of participants expressing WTD at Wave 1 died during a 6-year follow-up. Conclusions WTD amongst community-dwelling older people is frequently transient and is strongly linked with the course of depressive symptoms and loneliness. An enhanced focus on improving access to mental health care and addressing social isolation in older people should therefore be a public health priority, particularly in the current context of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Correction: An International Consensus Definition of the Wish to Hasten Death and Its Related Factors

Cited by 4 publications

References 1 publication

Le souhait de hâter la mort : définition, déterminants, enjeux et perspectives

Le souhait de hâter la mort : définition, déterminants, enjeux et perspectives

“I’m Done”: A patient’s wish and will to die

The ‘Wish to Die’ in later life: prevalence, longitudinal course and mortality. Data from TILDA

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