Slow Medicine

Slow Medicine is a movement that encourages less aggressive — and less costly — care at the end of life. This movement has come in direct response from the many elderly patients who find themselves faced with the health care system’s offer of a myriad of tests and procedures that may not necessarily improve the quality of their lives.

On Tuesday, March 22 at 7 p.m. the Vineyard Haven Public Library will host a panel of Island professionals to discuss and answer questions about slow medicine.

Grounded in research at the Dartmouth Medical School, the slow medicine movement aims to educate patients and families on how to push back against emergency room trips and hospitalizations designed for those with treatable illnesses, not those suffering from the inevitable erosion of advanced age. It also encourages physicians to take care in considering procedures that may have high risks and limited rewards for the elderly.

For more details about the event, call 508-696-4211, extension 16.