Nursing Home Care Case

In this study, a 74-year-old man with multiple chronic medical problems was hospitalized for respiratory distress. He experienced recurrent aspiration and required frequent suctioning and endotracheal intubation on several occasions. The patient was deemed competent and steadfastly refused feeding tube placement. The patient demanded that he be allowed to eat a normal diet despite being told that it could lead to his death. The patient wanted to go home, but there was no one there to care for him. Additionally, neither a nursing home nor hospice would accept him in his present condition. The case is especially interesting because of the symbolic value of food and the plight of the patient who has no alternative to hospitalization. The hospital staff experienced considerable stress at having to care for him. They were uncertain whether their obligation was to respect his autonomy and continue to provide food or to protect his health by avoiding aspiration, pneumonia, and possible death by denying him food. …show more content…
The patients wants to eat a normal diet and go home; in this case it is the patient right to refuse treatment. The patient is competent and since nursing homes will not take him he could possibly get an in-home nurse to take care of him. The informed consent in this case should be clearer to the patient. This would help the patient understand more about the consequences of not taking the feeding tube. With refusing treatment, the patient must be well-informed to make the decision, have proper decision-making capacity to understand the consequences of refusal, and make the decision without handling or pressure by outsiders. The doctors and nurses in this case should be constantly informing the patients of the risks and also any