Refusal of Treatment
The intent of the physician is try to do well and avoid all evil, although avoiding all evil has been proven to be impossible. It is necessary then to have scruples that identify which goods are to be done and which evils are to be eluded (Baillie et al., 2012). As a healthcare provider a judgement of proportionality of good intended and evil risked are well-adjusted and a final decision on the chosen treatment is made. The law in the United States is adamant on obtaining informed consent, especially for any procedure or treatment that could involve risks to the patient. The effects of treatment on the patient’s life, health, religious beliefs, values, friends, and family are all factors that influence the ethical …show more content…
If the patient decides to deny treatment an order for discontinuing treatment will be placed and the patient will be transferred to another physician. The courts have stated regularly that there is no legal or ethical difference between withholding and withdrawing of life sustaining interventions (Lachman, 2015). A legal alternative of physician assisted suicide is voluntary stopping of eating and drinking. VSED is legal in all 50 states and is defined as the stoppage of all food and water that is necessary for sustaining life. Assistance is provided to VSED patients in the form of palliative care (such as turning in bed and mouth care) the patient usually passes away within 1-3 weeks from terminal dehydration (Lachman, 2015). Physician assisted suicide greatly differs from VSED by allowing the patient to ingest lethal medications instead of only withdrawing food and fluids. In PAS the patient passes away within minutes to hours due to an overdose of barbiturates (Lachman, 2015). Additionally, there is a reluctance of physicians, families, and courts to allow the discontinuation of feeding tubes. Judges have concluded that artificial nutrition and hydration are medical treatments in the same way that ventilators and blood transfusions are, thus giving patients the right to decide on the discontinuation …show more content…
A terminally ill patient should have the right to die on their own terms and in their own way. I also find physician assisted suicide ethically correct in many ways, because technically no matter which method you choose the end result will always be death. The main difference between PAS and passive suicide is the length of time the patient is kept alive before they inevitably pass away. As a nurse I understand that there will be times I will wish my patients would hold on longer, that they would try treatment just “one more time”, or that they would simply not give up just yet. What is of most importance for nurses to understand is the free-will all patients have the right to possess, and their innate ability to decide for themselves when enough is enough. As nurses we have a strong conviction as to what we believe is in the best interest of our patients. In the midst of our own beliefs, as nurses we must still find a way to respect our patient’s decisions even when we find them to go against our own. The foundation of nursing is built on caring for our patients free from our own judgement and within all aspects of their life. Whether it’s assisting with the birth of a baby, caring for a sick patient in their time of need, or providing comfort to a terminally ill patient taking their last few breaths of life. I look forward to the day patients can put an
The intent of the physician is try to do well and avoid all evil, although avoiding all evil has been proven to be impossible. It is necessary then to have scruples that identify which goods are to be done and which evils are to be eluded (Baillie et al., 2012). As a healthcare provider a judgement of proportionality of good intended and evil risked are well-adjusted and a final decision on the chosen treatment is made. The law in the United States is adamant on obtaining informed consent, especially for any procedure or treatment that could involve risks to the patient. The effects of treatment on the patient’s life, health, religious beliefs, values, friends, and family are all factors that influence the ethical …show more content…
If the patient decides to deny treatment an order for discontinuing treatment will be placed and the patient will be transferred to another physician. The courts have stated regularly that there is no legal or ethical difference between withholding and withdrawing of life sustaining interventions (Lachman, 2015). A legal alternative of physician assisted suicide is voluntary stopping of eating and drinking. VSED is legal in all 50 states and is defined as the stoppage of all food and water that is necessary for sustaining life. Assistance is provided to VSED patients in the form of palliative care (such as turning in bed and mouth care) the patient usually passes away within 1-3 weeks from terminal dehydration (Lachman, 2015). Physician assisted suicide greatly differs from VSED by allowing the patient to ingest lethal medications instead of only withdrawing food and fluids. In PAS the patient passes away within minutes to hours due to an overdose of barbiturates (Lachman, 2015). Additionally, there is a reluctance of physicians, families, and courts to allow the discontinuation of feeding tubes. Judges have concluded that artificial nutrition and hydration are medical treatments in the same way that ventilators and blood transfusions are, thus giving patients the right to decide on the discontinuation …show more content…
A terminally ill patient should have the right to die on their own terms and in their own way. I also find physician assisted suicide ethically correct in many ways, because technically no matter which method you choose the end result will always be death. The main difference between PAS and passive suicide is the length of time the patient is kept alive before they inevitably pass away. As a nurse I understand that there will be times I will wish my patients would hold on longer, that they would try treatment just “one more time”, or that they would simply not give up just yet. What is of most importance for nurses to understand is the free-will all patients have the right to possess, and their innate ability to decide for themselves when enough is enough. As nurses we have a strong conviction as to what we believe is in the best interest of our patients. In the midst of our own beliefs, as nurses we must still find a way to respect our patient’s decisions even when we find them to go against our own. The foundation of nursing is built on caring for our patients free from our own judgement and within all aspects of their life. Whether it’s assisting with the birth of a baby, caring for a sick patient in their time of need, or providing comfort to a terminally ill patient taking their last few breaths of life. I look forward to the day patients can put an