Bill Berlow

Many terminally ill people prefer to die at home rather than in a hospital or other care facility, reports Bill Berlow in the following viewpoint. Dying people often enjoy a higher quality of life in their final days if they are in familiar surroundings accompanied by family and loved ones, he points out. Although a patient’s choice to die at home can place great emotional strain on his or her family, many families appreciate the opportunity to nurture their dying loved ones in their last days. Berlow is the editor of the Tallahassee Democrat, a Florida periodical.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Berlow, why did many terminally ill patients choose to die in hospitals in the earlier part of the twentieth century?
2. Why might some...