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Atul Gawande

When a dying person asks their doctor if they can do anything to help, is it easier for the doctor to provide false hope than have a difficult conversation about their last days?

When a dying person asks their doctor if he or she can do anything to help, is it easier for the doctor to provide a false hope than have a difficult conversation about how best to manage their last days? Hardtalk speaks to Atul Gawande, who wants to change the way doctors think - and talk - about death. It's a subject he'll be covering in the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½'s annual Reith lectures this year. He says doctors are good at addressing specific individual problems or diseases, but argues that the ultimate goal is not a good death but a good life - all the way to the very end.

30 minutes

Last on

Tue 4 Nov 2014 21:30GMT

Credits

Role Contributor
Producer Sarah Montague
Interviewed Guest Atul Gawande

Broadcasts