Avoiding the End-of-Life Medical Conveyer Belt

Thirty percent of Americans die in ICUs hooked up to machines, despite their preferences to the contrary. Dr. Jessica Nutik Zitter practices the seemingly contradictory specialties of critical care and palliative care. She sees a medical system geared toward treating individual organ systems rather than caring for whole patients. Dr. Zitter's New York Times columns illustrate the challenges patients and their families face and provide specific steps individuals can take for better end-of-life experiences. She will be interviewed by Mark Zitter, who co-founded a telephone counseling service for patients with life-limiting illnesses.