At Peace

At Peace is the authoritative, informative, and practical follow-up to Being Mortal, focusing on end-of-life care for patients over the age of 65.

Most people express a desire to die quietly at home. However, overly aggressive medical advice, coupled with an unrealistic sense of invincibility, often results in elderly patients dying in institutions while undergoing painful procedures, instead of experiencing the more peaceful death they had hoped for.

At Peace outlines specific active and passive steps that older patients and their health care proxies can take to ensure their loved ones spend their last days comfortably at home or in hospice, when further aggressive care is inappropriate.

Drawing from Dr. Harrington's own experience with his parents and patients, he describes the terminal patterns of the six most common chronic diseases, how to recognise a terminal diagnosis even when the doctor is not explicit, and how to initiate the hard conversation about end-of-life wishes. The book also covers how to minimise painful treatments, when to seek hospice care, and how to handle dementia and other special issues.

With insights from more than thirty years of clinical practice, Dr. Harrington realised that the American health care system isn't structured to treat the aging population with care and compassion. His involvement as a hospice trustee and later as a hospital trustee has fueled his passion for assisting patients in making appropriate end-of-life decisions.