ZĂłcalo Essay - How Doctors Die - Selected for the Best American Essays 2012
APRIL 2, 2012. The essay âHow Doctors Die,â by Dr. Ken Murray, first published in ZĂłcalo Public Square, has been selected for the collection The Best American Essays 2012. The article, which describes how doctors forego much of the end-of-life treatment they offer to others, ran as part of ZĂłcaloâs âRemediesâ series, made possible by the California HealthCare Foundation.
Dr. Murray, a family doctor who lives in Southern California, is a regular contributor to ZĂłcalo. He wrote the article prompted by years of seeing patients and acquaintances die in ways they didnât want or choose. Murray feels that they should have the choice, like doctors, to âgo gently.â The essay has received attention around the world, with translations into multiple languages, and has been written about in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post, as well as newspapers and magazines abroad.