Deciding to Forego Life-Sustaining Treatment: A Report on the Ethical, Medical, and Legal Issues in Treatment Decisions
Item
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Title
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Deciding to Forego Life-Sustaining Treatment: A Report on the Ethical, Medical, and Legal Issues in Treatment Decisions
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ABP identifier
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ABP-W-0021
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Date
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1983
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Type
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Commission report
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Description
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This federal commission report addressed decisions about cardiopulmonary resuscitation, artificial nutrition and hydration, treatment of seriously ill newborns, and care for patients unable to decide for themselves. It argued that competent patients may refuse life-sustaining treatment and that surrogate decisions should attend to the patient’s own values and welfare.
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Intellectual stream
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Law & public policy
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Clinical ethics & professionalism
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Verification status
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Verified
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Evidence confidence
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High
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Historical significance
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This federal commission report addressed decisions about cardiopulmonary resuscitation, artificial nutrition and hydration, treatment of seriously ill newborns, and care for patients unable to decide for themselves. It argued that competent patients may refuse life-sustaining treatment and that surrogate decisions should attend to the patient’s own values and welfare. The report also rejected a simple moral distinction between withholding and withdrawing treatment. By bringing ethical analysis, clinical practice, and law into one national policy document, it gave hospitals and courts a common framework for end-of-life decisions. It is a major record of the period when bedside disputes became subjects of formal consultation, institutional policy, and public regulation.
