Kevorkian’s gift

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Dr. Jack Kevorkian's legacy is of a crusader and crank. Kevorkian, who died Friday, stubbornly battled for acceptance of assisted-suicide for terminally ill patients, sparking widespread debate and drawing extensive media coverage during the 1990s.

His support of euthanasia eventually led to a murder conviction and eight years in prison. HBO later produced a movie about him. Kevorkian even ran unsuccessfully for Congress.

As controversial as “Dr. Death” became, his actions nonetheless produced something of great value: more awareness of end-of-life care issues.

Was it just coincidence that the growth of hospice organizations accelerated during and after Kevorkian's turbulent times? Not

likely.

Hospice of Central Iowa became the state's first hospice care organization in 1978. Today, 69 hospice agencies with 105 locations are members of the Hospice and Palliative Care Association of Iowa. The state's first inpatient unit opened in 1992 in Mason City. In 2007, the Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House of Mercy opened in Hiawatha, the first hospice facility in the Cedar Rapids-Iowa City corridor.

Whether or not you find value in Kevorkian's position and tactics, he deserves some credit for focusing the nation's attention on taking better care of dying patients and their families.