Death is Not a Failure

In my conversation with Dr. Elaine Chen of Rush University Medical Center, who is both an Intensive Care and Palliative Care physician, I asked her how being a Palliative Care specialist has helped her as a Critical Care physician. The thing that struck me the most about her answer was this, "[Death is] not a failure." 

In my conversation with Dr. Elaine Chen of Rush University Medical Center, who is both an Intensive Care and Palliative Care physician, I asked her how being a Palliative Care specialist has helped her as a Critical Care physician. This part of the answer struck me the most: "[Death is] not a failure."

That was so profound for me.

I can safely speak for most people when I say that we went into Medicine to help people heal, to help prevent people from dying. This is especially so in Critical Care Medicine. And so, when our patients do die, it is very hard to not take a patient's death as a failure, not to take it personally.

This was especially true during the pandemic. Over, and over, and over again, we tried our hardest - spent blood, sweat, and tears - to care for Covid patients, and they kept dying despite everything we do. It was very hard not feel like a failure when our patients died.

Dr. Chen's words brought me such comfort. Death is not a failure, it is a transition. And, like it or not, some of our patients - despite doing everything right and trying our hardest - are going to die. They are going to make the transition.

We need to stop taking it personally. We need to stop feeling like our patients' death are failures - so long, of course, as we did everything in our power to try and help our patients. And, when it is clear that our patients will die, that they are making that transition, as Dr. Chen puts it, then we need to do all we can to make sure our patients die with dignity and comfort on their own terms. It is much easier said that done, no doubt, and it is essential that we remember it as much as possible.

Helping our patients conquer critical illness is the honor and privilege of a lifetime, a fulfillment of a lifetime dream for me personally. And if we can also help our patients die with dignity and comfort, on their own terms, it is also as Dr. Chen says,

"a huge privilege to be with patients in that setting....to walk alongside them and their families as they are approaching a transition."

Very well said indeed.