Practicing Slow Medicine in the Elderly

Last week’s New York Times ran an article about a medical approach known as “slow medicine.” Reporter Jane Gross examined use of the approach, which is based on research developed at the Dartmouth Medical School, at a New Hampshire retirement community. Slow medicine “encourages physicians to put on the brakes when considering care that may have high risks and limited rewards for the elderly, and it educates patients and families how to push back against emergency room trips and hospitalizations designed for those with treatable illnesses, not the inevitable erosion of advanced age.”

The article noted that like hospice care, slow medicine offers a philosophy of comfort, rather than cure. The approach is becoming more common in nursing homes, but is rare for elderly living at home or in other types of assisted living.