November Ballot to
Feature Question on Health Care
On Election Day (Nov. 6), there will be a question on the
ballot that would allow terminally-ill patients to obtain and self-administer a
prescription to end their lives. If the measure, known as "Death with
Dignity" is approved by voters, Massachusetts would become only the third state
in the nation to adopt such a law (in addition to Oregon and Washington).
Participation in the law by health care providers would be voluntary.
Partners HealthCare will not have a formal position on the
measure. We are preparing, however, for the possibility that this may
become law and planning for the potential impact such a law would have on our
clinical staff.
To start this planning effort, Partners has convened a
multidisciplinary taskforce comprised of representatives from hospitals across
the system. Co-Chairs Tejal Gandhi, MD, Partners Chief Quality and Safety
Officer, and Brit Nicholson, MD, Senior Vice President of Medicine and
Chief Medical Officer at Mass General, will lead the efforts to
develop a standard protocol to manage requests from terminally-ill patients.
The taskforce will evaluate and make recommendations on the appropriate role of
various disciplines including medicine, social work, psychiatry and palliative
care. As you know, the goal of Partners HealthCare and all its health
care providers is to provide the best quality care and to ensure the best
quality of life possible, especially at the end of life.
In the coming weeks, we will keep you posted on the outcome
of the election and, if necessary, the implementation of new policy.