tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post2097114070351808877..comments2024-02-10T02:14:39.898-05:00Comments on Buckeye Surgeon: Futile CareJeffrey Parks MD FACShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15650563299849196122noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-85486397055421105012007-12-20T07:11:00.000-05:002007-12-20T07:11:00.000-05:00Im will agree with your # 1 to make sure everyone ...Im will agree with your # 1 to make sure everyone has a living will and POA. However these documents have never previously been tested with respectv to patient safety. If you get a chance read The Journal of Emerency Medicine Oct 2007 Vol 33 no3 pages 299-305. Does a livingt will equal a DNR? Are living wills compromising patient safety?<BR/><BR/>These documents if not understood are deadly!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-10787713300792553412007-12-20T03:14:00.000-05:002007-12-20T03:14:00.000-05:00As one who is reaching that 60 year old mark this ...As one who is reaching that 60 year old mark this topic is one I think about. In reality, I think our biggest fear is not in being dead, but in the getting there. Our families want us to live forever. They want that so badly, that they unknowingly cause us to suffer much more than we need to. Are they selfish? Or, do they just not realize what is really happening? Maybe some of both? <BR/><BR/>I have made my wishes known to my family, but when it comes down to it, I worry that emotions will take over and they will go for the odds.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-59949129663190994472007-12-19T20:58:00.000-05:002007-12-19T20:58:00.000-05:00It's a very difficult area, and one in which a phy...It's a very difficult area, and one in which a physician can have a huge influence in either direction -- more than they realize, I'd say. I think it's incumbent on docs to address it deeply and thoughtfully, as you suggest. I know some docs -- surgeons included -- that continue to do "everything" because it's easier than making the tough decisions and having the honest conversations that those situations often require.Sid Schwabhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14182853083503404098noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-4473687696429538772007-12-19T06:07:00.000-05:002007-12-19T06:07:00.000-05:00I didn't mean to imply that Panda wants to kill gr...I didn't mean to imply that Panda wants to kill granny. Read my post. I agree with the dude. I just didn't like the title of the article. I thought it was a little sensationalistic and detracted from his main points.Jeffrey Parks MD FACShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15650563299849196122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-55778037785963576062007-12-18T23:20:00.000-05:002007-12-18T23:20:00.000-05:00You wrote, "But put Granny down? Did granny ask to...You wrote, <BR/><BR/><BR/>"But put Granny down? Did granny ask to be in this situation? Is it her fault that she's "such a burden" to society? Isn't there a more dignified way to handle the last days of a human being?<BR/><BR/><BR/>I don't think Panda was implying this. You come across scolding him on ethics and the Hippocratic Oath. I don't think you read or understood his blog (at least from my interpretation of it).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-43783950653614266002007-12-18T18:36:00.000-05:002007-12-18T18:36:00.000-05:00Navigating ethical issues is a bit like flying an ...Navigating ethical issues is a bit like flying an airplane...the thorniest and most urgent decisions occur at the very beginning and the very end. <BR/><BR/>A few years ago, I had a patient who was clearly circling a very expensive drain. The family, who had a very different culture than my own or any of the other care providers, didn't trust us and felt that we were advising them to let their loved one go for all the wrong reasons. The resulting prolonged hospitalization and eventual death satisfied no one.<BR/><BR/>Somehow, when these decisions are at hand, we need physicians that are adept at understanding not only the scientific issues but the patient’s medical narrative and the cultural context. It is another good reason to support both diversity and the medical humanities in medical education.Brucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13796821092673583519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-23171113697779923062007-12-17T22:24:00.000-05:002007-12-17T22:24:00.000-05:00The questions are even more loaded (emotionally, e...The questions are even more loaded (emotionally, etc) on the front end of life. At which week of premature life do you not initiate care, if ever. Many of those medical dollars are spent on neonatal care and then the endless problems some (SOME) have their entire life. None of us have a crystal ball which makes it so very difficult.rlbateshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15236331355857884458noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2760353953251845523.post-91321269803850412422007-12-17T20:56:00.000-05:002007-12-17T20:56:00.000-05:00Whoa. I didn't suggest that we "put granny down."...Whoa. I didn't suggest that we "put granny down." I just pointed out that this is how any attempt to impose rationing on end of life care is going to be viewed politically.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com