Older People Don't Like to Talk About Life Expectancy, Survey Reveals

An American Academy of Family Physicians survey found older adults do not like to talk about life expectancy within a hypothetical scenario, reports Earth.com . When requested to consider this situation from the hypothetical person's perspective, 878 participants older than 65 were asked if they would query their clinician about their life expectancy, if they thought this was an appropriate discussion for the doctor to bring up, if they would like their physician to discuss their life expectancy with family and friends, and at what point should life expectancy be talked about. Fifty-nine percent of survey participants did not want to discuss their life expectancy at all within the hypothetical scenario, and 291 believed the discussion to be inappropriate for a doctor to initiate, while 450 did not want their doctor discussing life expectancy with loved ones. When participants were told that their hypothetical life expectancy was increased, fewer felt it should be discussed, with 56 percent only deeming it necessary to raise the issue if life expectancy was less than two years. Participants who found it necessary to discuss life expectancy often had higher levels of education, faith in doctors to predict life expectancy, and had experienced a life-threatening illness or gone through the same scenario with a family member. Participants who felt the discussion was unnecessary often had stronger religious convictions.