{"id":220654,"date":"2020-03-26T14:40:45","date_gmt":"2020-03-26T19:40:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=220654"},"modified":"2020-03-25T20:50:42","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T01:50:42","slug":"isolation-families-prevent-depression-suicide-elderly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/isolation-families-prevent-depression-suicide-elderly\/","title":{"rendered":"In time of isolation, families get creative to prevent depression and suicide among elderly"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As the healthcare system grapples with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many states are looking to expand telemedicine. The assisted suicide lobby has wasted no time in pushing for assisted suicide through telemedicine<\/a>, an effort which they have advocated for years. In a fundraising email from Kim Callinan, president of a prominent assisted suicide lobbying group, obtained by the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Callinan wrote<\/a> that the group is \u201cresponding quickly to the needs and opportunities of the times.\u201d By this, Callinan means that they are seeking to capitalize on the current crisis to allow patients to be assessed for legal suicide without meeting a doctor in person.\u00a0The implications of such a policy are deeply troubling.\u00a0Studies show<\/a> that the reason patients seek assisted suicide is most often mental distress, including depression and fear of becoming a burden to family members.<\/p>\n

READ:\u00a0Euthanasia organization tells elderly they\u2019ll have a \u2018bad death\u2019 without assisted suicide<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

At the same time, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and long-term care communities are not permitting visitors in order to prevent the spread of the virus to elderly and vulnerable people with underlying health conditions. This puts these same individuals at increased risk of depression and feelings of despair, the conditions which prompt most people to seek out assisted suicide.<\/p>\n

Despite the inability to visit nursing homes in person, many people across the country are getting creative to let them know that they are not forgotten. Many communities are encouraging people to send cards<\/a>, letters, and photos to nursing home residents to cheer them up.<\/p>\n