Do Not Resuscitate Rights for Developmentally Challenged and Seniors
Author: American Osteopathic Association
Published: 2012/07/24 - Updated: 2021/08/18
Category Topic: End-of-Life - Palliative Care - Academic Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main
Synopsis: Calls to work with societies and advocacy groups for developmentally disabled to develop policies and ensure dignity at time of death for all individuals. A do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order tells medical professionals not to perform CPR. This means that doctors, nurses and emergency medical personnel will not attempt emergency CPR if the patient's breathing or heartbeat stops.
Introduction
Members of the American Osteopathic Association's (AOA) House of Delegates approved two policies today to protect patients' rights at the time of death for all individuals, including older adults and developmentally challenged adults.
Main Content
- Do Not Resuscitate
- A do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order tells medical professionals not to perform CPR. This means that doctors, nurses and emergency medical personnel will not attempt emergency CPR if the patient's breathing or heartbeat stops. DNR orders may be written for patients in a hospital or nursing home, or for patients at home. Hospital DNR orders tell the medical staff not to revive the patient if cardiac arrest occurs. If the patient is in a nursing home or at home, a DNR order tells the staff and emergency medical personnel not to perform emergency resuscitation and not to transfer the patient to a hospital for CPR.
Do Not Resuscitate Orders on Older Adults
In numerous states, "Do Not Resuscitate" procedure laws fail to address the needs of the elderly who are no longer of sound mind and who reside in a long-term or extended-care facility. These adults might have told a loved one that they did not wish to be resuscitated but failed to sign legal documentation to support their wishes.
The policy calls for the AOA to work with state societies and elder care advocacy groups to encourage legislation upholding a patient's right to "Do Not Resuscitate" designation as determined by patient or, if the patient is incompetent, the family, attending physicians or patient advocate.
"Ideally, these conversations about end-of-life care should take place while everyone is still healthy and capable to make their own decisions. These intentions should then be noted in legal documentation," explains Kevin P. Hubbard, DO, corporate vice president of Heartland Hematology-Oncology Associates in Kansas City, Mo., and clinical professor of medicine at the Kansas City (Mo.) University of Medicine and Biosciences College of Osteopathic Medicine.
"If elder adults have previously expressed their desire to reject life-prolonging interventions, they have a right to a 'do not resuscitate' designation even if they are unable to express their intent in their current state."
End-of-Life Care for Developmentally Disabled
Another policy calls for the AOA to work with state societies and advocacy groups for the developmentally disabled to develop and implement policies to ensure dignity at the time of death for all individuals, including the developmentally challenged. Since many states acknowledge advanced directives and "Do Not Resuscitate" orders as a personal right, the legal guardian of a developmentally disabled adult is unable to sign such orders on behalf of a loved one.
Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by American Osteopathic Association and published on 2012/07/24, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.