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Withholding Resuscitation: A New Approach to Prehospital End-of-Life Decisions
- Stuart Farber, MD;
- Jim Shaw, MD;
- Jeff Mero; and
- W. Hugh Maloney, MD
- From University of Washington, Washington End-of-Life Consensus Coalition, Association of Washington Public Hospital Districts, and Washington State Medical Association, Seattle, Washington, and Washington State Medical Association POLST Program, Spokane, Washington.
TO THE EDITOR:
The recent article by Feder and colleagues (1) describes an observational study started in King County, Washington, in 1998 and made reference to a specific, state-approved prehospital do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order form. Since that study began, Washington has replaced this form with the Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) form. The accompanying editorial by Kellerman and Lynn (2) describes the value of the POLST form as an increasingly widespread standard form for seriously ill persons to document their treatment wishes as physician orders. The POLST form originated in Oregon, and research has demonstrated its effectiveness in helping patients have their preferences for end-of-life care honored, even when emergency medical services (EMS) are contacted.
Encouraged by the success …
