Initiating and Withdrawing Life Support

Abstract

DURING the past century, dramatic changes have occurred in physicians' ability to prolong life. A hundred years ago, little more than rudimentary supportive care could be offered to most critically ill patients. Doctors now choose from a vast array of interventions that, when combined with effective therapies for underlying conditions, often greatly prolong survival. Unfortunately, the quality of the additional life so skillfully sought can range from marginally tolerable to positively miserable.These considerations underscore the importance of a clear ethical framework for making decisions about the initiation and withdrawal of all medical treatments. This paper considers basic and advanced . . .