Thanks, HTH
Mahalo, staff writer Stephanie Salmons and the Tribune-Herald, for your extensive coverage of the Our Care, Our Choice Act (Tribune-Herald, Feb. 14), which allows terminally ill Hawaii residents the option of medical aid-in-dying if their suffering becomes unbearable.
With the OCOCA in practice for more than two years now, it’s clear that the law is safe and works as intended — but only for those who can access it, such as Honolulu residents or those served by major hospital systems like Hawaii Pacific Health or Kaiser.
We rural residents, however, still struggle to find supportive providers. While the vast majority of hospitals in authorized states don’t allow end-of-life medication to be ingested on premises, the real issue is whether they will at least help patients with an “engaged neutral” policy, offering information and/or referrals. (Indeed, studies show that most of us, if given a choice, would prefer to die not in a hospital but at home, surrounded by loved ones.)
I was happy to read that our Hawaii Island hospitals are making progress toward implementing policies that are more supportive of patients’ wishes to access the entire spectrum of end-of-life care.
I am also in support of Senate Bill 839, a bill to amend the OCOCA to (1) allow qualified advanced practice registered nurses to support their patients who choose this option, and (2) reduce the waiting period that sick patients must endure between their first and second spoken requests.
It will greatly improve suffering, terminally ill individuals’ access to the law.
Aubrey Hawk
Volcano
Why so much litter?
As a new resident of Hilo, I am distressed and saddened by the amount of litter along the roads.
I’m not here to try to change things to suit me, and I realize that it isn’t nearly the most important issue at hand. As a native Californian, I was disturbed by the amount of litter along the roads in that state, but it doesn’t remotely compare to what I see here.
I plan to pick up whatever litter I can in the future. Can someone tell me why this situation exists?
Karen Cooper
Hilo