Atul Gawande

Medicine is so very good at fixing problems. Doctors always find room to say, 'Well let's try another treatment', without thinking what that might take away, the harm it could do. You know, in the fourth regimen of chemotherapy you're just getting the toxicity and none of the benefit in most instances. Often it's done out of an inability to have the kind of discussion and understanding of death that would recognize that the best possible day today, with what capabilities we have, is going to be far better than sacrificing yet another week for the sake of some possible future week. Show less «

We've expended a lot of effort on assisted death and way too little on assisted living.