PMID: 7543552Apr 1, 1995Paper

When families request that 'everything possible' be done

The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy
N S Jecker, L J Schneiderman

Abstract

The paper explores the ethical and psychological issues that arise when family members request that "everything possible" be done for a particular patient. The paper first illustrates this phenomenon by reviewing the well known case of Helga Wanglie. We proceed to argue that in Wanglie and similar cases family members may request futile treatments as a means of conveying that (1) the loss of the patient is tantamount to losing a part of themselves; (2) the patient should not be abandoned or disvalued in any way; or (3) the patient is owed special obligations by virtue of the special relationship in which the family and the patient stand. We maintain that families can best express these important messages by caring for patients, rather than by making requests for futile interventions. Likewise, when life-sustaining measures are futile, health providers can best fulfill their professional obligations by assuring patients' dignity and comfort, rather than by applying futile interventions.

Citations

Feb 17, 2000·Clinical Cardiology·W D Doty, R M Walker
May 31, 2012·Supportive Care in Cancer : Official Journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer·June Koo LeeDae Seog Heo
May 26, 2005·Journal of Ethnopharmacology·Mitsue F HayacibaraJaime A Cury
Dec 13, 2006·The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy·Robert M Veatch
Dec 1, 1995·Journal of Internal Medicine·J M Stanley
Oct 16, 2004·Journal of General Internal Medicine·Deborah L Kasman
Aug 20, 2015·Annals of Medicine and Surgery·Henry John Murray FergusonTariq Ismail
Jun 18, 2005·The British Journal of Surgery·B HofmannJ A Søreide
Feb 21, 2002·AACN Clinical Issues·Ellen M Robinson
Aug 29, 2001·International Anesthesiology Clinics·E M Robinson, L Mylott
Mar 5, 2013·The Medical Journal of Australia·Dominic J C Wilkinson

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