End-of-Life Care When the State Is the Guardian

Baumrucker, Steven J.; Sheldon, Joanne E.; Stolick, Matt; Oertli, Karrie A.; Harrington, Dianne; VandeKieft, Gregg; Morris, Gerald M.

doi:10.1177/1049909110364020

Cited by 6 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…Presumably, to make it impossible for a prisoner to ''cheat'' the state of seeing that justice is done and guilty parties are punished, the state takes precautions against prisoner suicide. 5 We can assume that the requirement to mandate maximum resuscitative and therapeutic measures falls under the same rationale.…”

Section: Ethical Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Hospitalized Prisoner With a Life-Threatening Illness

Badger

Ladd²,

Friedemann³

2012

JONA’S Healthcare Law, Ethics, and Regulation

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It is generally accepted that the Patient's Bill of Rights applies to all patients including prisoners. Yet, a prisoners' incarcerated status generally prohibits inmates from making any decision that may shorten his/her life, and as such, the de facto medical decision maker becomes the medical director of the state correctional facility. This case study highlights the challenges that arise when the ethically appropriate response to a hospitalized prisoner's terminal medical condition warrants decisions that are in conflict with that advocated by the correctional facility.

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Section: Ethical Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Hospitalized Prisoner With a Life-Threatening Illness

Badger

Ladd²,

Friedemann³

2012

JONA’S Healthcare Law, Ethics, and Regulation

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“…According to “ A Guide to Kansas Laws on Guardianship and Conservatorship ,” 2 consent to withdraw or withhold life-saving or life-sustaining measures cannot be made solely by a guardian or surrogate unless otherwise stated in a preexisting living will. If withdrawing life-sustaining treatment is medically necessary due to the patient’s persistent vegetative state or chronic suffering and there is little to no room for restoring health or quality of life, the physician must submit a letter to the court asking that these measures be withdrawn.…”

Section: Review Of Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although a decision regarding hospice care or DNR order cannot be made without consulting the court first, best efforts should be made in the meantime to keep the patient as comfortable and pain free as possible while staying within the realm of the law. 2…”

Section: Review Of Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Hardships of End-of-Life Care With Court-Appointed Guardians

Hastings

2013

Am J Hosp Palliat Care

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In the United States, the court-appointed guardians do not have the ability to make decisions regarding end-of-life (EOL) care for their clients. Additionally, the process of initiating EOL care measures can be slow and cumbersome, despite an existing process of getting approval for such care. This process has the potential to prolong suffering and delay imperative decisions. This article reviews the hardships that patients, court-appointed guardians, and health care staff endure while moving through the oppressive process of obtaining EOL care orders through the court. This article also proposes ways of tuning up the laws, regulations, and communications to make it easier and faster to obtain orders regarding EOL care to preserve the dignity of our patients and loved ones. "A guardianship is a legal relationship created when a person or institution named in a will or assigned by the court to take care of minor children or incompetent adults."

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“…4 At end of life, the location of placement may mean the difference between residing in a residence that is knowledgeable of medical issues versus one that has no experience handling health problems. 5,6 Unfortunately, it is all too common for children in foster care to have multiple placements among foster homes, including exit and reentry into foster care or across state lines, which has serious consequences for children. [7][8][9][10] At end of life, this placement instability has the potential to exacerbate pain and other symptoms.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%