(Snippets from the frontline)
Futile Care?
He smoked his entire life, developed lung cancer and was demented with paralysis. Hospitalized, his discomfort was controlled, “futile care” discussed with family, and then sent home on hospice. He passed away without suffering.
She was in her 6th decade living with multiple sclerosis most of her life. During the winter, pneumonia resulted in hospitalization and a breathing machine. Her family was told care would be “futile”, so she was placed on hospice and sent to a nursing home. She survived and went home.
Two different case scenarios seen by physicians every day.
“Futile care” is sometimes obvious, other times complicated, and goes the full gamut of medical extremes. It has far too many variations for a snippet topic.
As a 40-year practicing physician now seeing the forces of business interests on medical decision-making, I bring you this warning: Become familiar with the term “futile care” so you or your loved ones are not exploited.
Hospitals, insurance companies, and HMOs are intervening and swaying physicians to enhance self-serving bottom lines unjustly designating patients with this status.
The growing profit-seeking moral erosion of healthcare should not be allowed to displace financially unbiased medical decision-making.
Gene Uzawa Dorio, M.D.
Thank you for your article on futile care. I have seen families many time demanding all care though they were told it is futile because they collectively cannot make the hard decision. This futile care is frequently a waste of resources, needed for care that will be helpful for someone else, and at the same time causing distress in the moribund patient. A part answer to the problem is to have all Medicare receipients declare their opinion about futile care, with the fact stated that futile care after a reasonable period would be the financial responsibility of the estate and then of the family collectively.