1. Should Neonatologists Give Opinions Withdrawing Life-sustaining Treatment?
- Author
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Blumenthal-Barby, J. S., Loftis, Laura, Cummings, Christy L., Meadow, William, Lemmon, Monica, Ubel, Peter A., McCullough, Laurence, Rao, Emily, and Lantos, John D.
- Subjects
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MEDICAL practice , *CEREBRAL hemorrhage , *ARTIFICIAL respiration , *AUTONOMY (Psychology) , *CHRONIC diseases in children , *COMMUNICATION , *DECISION making , *HOME nursing , *INFORMED consent (Medical law) , *JUDGMENT (Psychology) , *LIFE support systems in critical care , *PATIENT-family relations , *MEDICAL ethics , *MEDICAL personnel , *NEONATOLOGY , *PARENTS , *PATERNALISM , *PEDIATRICIANS , *QUALITY of life , *TRACHEOTOMY , *VALUES (Ethics) , *DECISION making in clinical medicine , *ETHICAL decision making , *FAMILY relations , *PASSIVE euthanasia , *PATIENTS' families , *ETHICS , *PROGNOSIS - Abstract
An infant has a massive intracranial hemorrhage. She is neurologically devastated and ventilator-dependent. The prognosis for pulmonary or neurologic recovery is bleak. The physicians and parents face a choice: withdraw the ventilator and allow her to die or perform a tracheotomy? The parents cling to hope for recovery. The physician must decide how blunt to be in communicating his own opinions and recommendations. Should the physician try to give just the facts? Or should he also make a recommendation based on his own values? In this article, experts in neonatology, decision-making, and bioethics discuss this situation and the choice that the physician faces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2016
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