Katy Butler Quotes & Sayings

Let's spend less on trying to fix the unfixable in the last five years of life and spend more supporting people so that they can stay the least disabled as they possibly can, the most independent as they possibly can, and keep them at home. — Katy Butler

When my father was vigorous and lucid, (my mother) regarded medicine as her wily ally in a lifelong campaign to keep old age, sickness, and death at bay. Now ally and foe exchanged masks. Medicine looked more like the enemy, and death the friend. (p. 184) — Katy Butler

To do more, is not necessarily to do better. — Katy Butler

I don't think people ever were free of fear of death, but clinging to life and being so unprepared for it is a modern experience. — Katy Butler

I want to break the taboo against questioning this drive for maximum longevity. — Katy Butler

Almost anyone you talk to will say, 'I don't want to die plugged into machines. — Katy Butler

Three-quarters of people say they want to die at home, but only a quarter of people actually do. — Katy Butler

I want people to suffer less, and I think it's possible. — Katy Butler

Attempting to grapple with improving end-of-life care is a political third rail. — Katy Butler

I've heard doctors say that before the crisis hits, people don't want prolonged measures, but then in the middle of the crisis they want everything. — Katy Butler

I think it's very interesting that [doctors] privilege the self that is saying, "I don't want to die," but want to discount the self that said, "I want to allow natural death in such a situation." — Katy Butler

Very few of us are succeeding in giving our parents the ideal death. — Katy Butler

We offer such false hopes to people that every medical problem can be fixed even when you're starting to deal with an 80- or a 90-year-old body that is breaking down in multiple ways and doesn't have that resilience. And so it doesn't surprise me that someone who is completely unprepared for death may say, "Doc, do everything." — Katy Butler