Patients have right ‘not to know’ about death

PATIENTS with terminal illnesses have a right not to be told of their impending death with doctors often feeling compelled to relay the full facts even if the individuals in question are not emotionally prepared for the news, a nursing conference at University College Cork (UCC) has heard.

Dr Joan McCarthy, lecturer at UCC’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, said one of the downsides of the focus on patient autonomy is a “compulsion to tell” on the behalf of medical professionals.

“Patients have a right not to know and that needs to be respected. Some patients feel emotionally unprepared to hear bad news. Some patients feel that it is a very private affair their dying and they don’t want to talk about it with professionals.”