sportygirl Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 I have a friend and her sister just died her sister had a DNR and it got me to thinking about DNR's and our profession. Has there ever been a time in your EMS career that you have wanted to try and save someone and not honor a DNR? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccmedoc Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 I have a friend and her sister just died her sister had a DNR and it got me to thinking about DNR's and our profession. Has there ever been a time in your EMS career that you have wanted to try and save someone and not honor a DNR? Nope. They usually have them for a reason. I more often wonder why we are resuscitating them and why they don't have one.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sportygirl Posted January 22, 2010 Author Share Posted January 22, 2010 (edited) I more often wonder why we are resuscitating them and why they don't have one.. My first full arrest was an older pt with aggressive cancer in the lung,and more apparently. He didn't have a DNR so is this what your saying? is he should have? Edited January 22, 2010 by sportygirl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard B the EMT Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 Not our place to make such judgment calls. I, for one, have apparently good health friends and relatives, who, knowing what my job entails, have made it known to me, that they have DNRs, or official requests for "no heroic actions to be taken, outside of making the patient more comfortable" at the end of their lives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akflightmedic Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 My first full arrest was an older pt with aggressive cancer in the lung,and more apparently. He didn't have a DNR so is this what your saying? is he should have? What was your first half-arrest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HellsBells Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 I don't know if its fair to say that he should have had a DNR. A lot of times the cancer moves so fast that the pt and family havent even come to terms with the fact that its a terminal illness, sometimes Ca doesnt give its victims time to get over the denial phase. To answer the original question, no I have never been upset by a DNR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akflightmedic Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 I have a friend and her sister just died her sister had a DNR and it got me to thinking about DNR's and our profession. Has there ever been a time in your EMS career that you have wanted to try and save someone and not honor a DNR? Never. Suppose you did "save" someone with a DNR...do you think they would be grateful or pissed off that you refused to honor their very personal decision all because you what...had hero complex or felt bad? At what point do your emotions weigh in or become more important than their decision which is supported with legal papers? Answer is...it doesn't and shouldn't. Besides, if I had a DNR and you intentionally disregarded it and resuscitated me, I would sue your ass off along with your employer...would be my one final gift to my surviving family members. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone Star Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 When I was working EMS in Michigan, the EMT-B could not honor a DNR order. For those patients that we encountered with a valid DNR order, we were instructed by protocol to begin resuscitative measures after calling for an ALS unit, (Paramedics were the only ones that were allowed to make that kind of call in the field). My first full arrest was an older pt with aggressive cancer in the lung,and more apparently. He didn't have a DNR so is this what your saying? is he should have? The DNR order isn't clinically REQUIRED for terminal patients, (It's my understanding that if they're in a hospice program, then it's a 'requirement'). Ultimately, it's a document stating the patient's wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happiness Posted January 22, 2010 Share Posted January 22, 2010 nope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sportygirl Posted January 22, 2010 Author Share Posted January 22, 2010 Ok I was not saying that I was making that call I wanted to know what ccmedoc meant Nope. They usually have them for a reason. I more often wonder why we are resuscitating them and why they don't have one.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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