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Dear Bette Ford--what a sad situation with your father. Please know that by sharing this problem with others you may have helped them to avoid at least this part of the pain of PD. Everyone, young, old, sick or healthy should have a Living Will and Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, which appoints the "proxy" you choose to express your wishes if you can- not do so yourself. There was an excellent program last night on public TV called "Whose Death is it Anyway?" that dealt with this and the importance of communication within families about "last wishes". In cases where there is no written record of a person's wishes, it can help if they have at least talked about them and made clear to family and doctor what they want--life support, heroic measures, or palliative comfort care (which some doctors don't do adequately.) Talk to your doctor ahead of time about palliative care--what is his/her attitude? Be sure documents are on file with doctor, person chosen as proxy, and included in hospital chart! This will help to avoid the terrible pain Bette and her family are experiencing now. Camilla Flintermann,CG for Peter,78/6+ Oxford,OH<[log in to unmask]>