Understanding living wills and DNR orders
- Collection:
- Health Policy and Services Research
- Series Title(s):
- Pennsylvania patient safety advisory
- Contributor(s):
- Pennsylvania. Patient Safety Authority. ECRI (Organization) Institute for Safe Medication Practices.
- Publication:
- [Harrisburg, Pa.] : Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, c2008
- Language(s):
- English
- Format:
- Text
- Subject(s):
- Advance Directives Living Wills Patient Preference Resuscitation Orders Communication Documentation Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice Patient Education as Topic Risk Management Terminal Care Humans Pennsylvania United States
- Genre(s):
- Technical Report
- Abstract:
- A living will is a document intended to convey a patient's preferences regarding end-of-life healthcare decisions when the patient cannot express them personally to a physician or other healthcare provider. A living will directs healthcare providers or a patient's authorized representative about the types of medical care the patient wishes to have provided or to forgo at the end of life, consistent with the patient's values and autonomy. A do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order is a medical order issued by a physician or other practitioner authorized to issue medical orders that directs clinicians not to provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the event of cardiac or respiratory arrest. A DNR order, by itself, does not address the withdrawal or withholding of any medical care other than resuscitation. Despite the prevalence of living wills and DNR orders, PA-PSRS reports received between June 2004 and September 2008 have revealed that healthcare providers, as well as patients and families, may not understand the differences between living wills and DNR orders. Misinterpretation of living wills and DNR orders may inadvertently result in the provision of unwanted care or the withdrawal or withholding of otherwise appropriate interventions. Accurate interpretation and implementation of these documents, in addition to effective planning and communication, is essential to ensure that a patient's end-of-life preferences for medical care are honored.
- Copyright:
- Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY-NC-DC license. (More information)
- NLM Unique ID:
- 101568258 (See catalog record)
- Permanent Link:
- http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101568258