Most Americans do not know about medical help in dying options

Most people in the United States do not know that medical assistance in dying, a legal practice that allows terminally ill patients to obtain a recipe for medication to end their lives, according to certain states is legal, according to researchers from Rutgers.

Their studyPublished in Jama Network Openinvestigated 3,277 adults from all 50 states and Washington, DC, to evaluate their knowledge of the legality of the practice, as well as their interest in possibly using it if they get a terminal diagnosis in the future.

Medical help with dying (for short) Legal in 10 states-Including New Jersey and Washington, DC-A fifth of the American population. Despite increasing the legal availability throughout the country, Rutgers-conducted research showed that 51.3% of the respondents did not know whether Maid was legally in the US and 50.8% was not sure about his legality in their own state.

“The lack of consciousness of the respondents was particularly surprising in states where Maid is legally, which tells us that those with access to Maid may not be aware of their health care options,” said Elissa Kozlov, a university teacher in the Department of Health Behavior, Society and Policy Health.

“For example, Maid is legal in New Jersey, but only 11% of respondents from the Garden State could correctly identify that girl is legal in their state.”

The researchers distributed the survey of individuals both in states with and without a legal girl, and discovered that 44% of the people surveyed show an interest in possibly using Maid in the future if the diagnosis was made a terminal disease.

In New Jersey, for example, to be eligible for Maid, a person older than 18 should be the capacity to make medical decisions, have a prognosis of less than six months and to be physically able to limit the medication itself.

The research underlines the importance of fairness in care at the end of the lifespan.

“Although historical data suggests that most patients who use care at the end of the lifespan are white and what university education have, our research has discovered that interest in girl outings different demographic groups,” said Kozlov, the main author of the study.

Among the respondents of the survey, 43.2% of the Asian participants, 34% of the black participants and 41.9% of the Spanish participants reported that they would consider girl.

“Systemic barriers – including financial limitations, lack of insurance coverage, difficulties that have access to health care and the silent nature of the delivery of health care – can limit access to the Dienstmeise for historically under -represented population,” said Paul Duberstein, chairman of the Ministry of the Public Health, Society and Senior or Policy.

The researchers said that the findings of the study emphasize the need for public education, policy initiatives and discussions about the patient clinic to guarantee fair access to patient-oriented end-of-life options and informed decision-making.

The researchers said that as more states can legalize the findings of the study, the findings of the study can be useful for policy makers, proponents and health care professionals who have to work together to create strategies and to support informed decision -making, which reduces obstacles to access to the end of life.