40,000 dying patients subject to secret 'do not resuscitate' orders every year

[dutchman]

As many as 40,000 patients a year are having “do not resuscitate orders” secretly imposed on them without their families ever being told, it can be disclosed.



A national audit of dying patients has highlighted a failure by authorities to tell relatives of plans put in place for their loved ones.

It is estimated that every year, more than 200,000 patients are issued with do not resuscitate orders, instructing doctors not to attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation if the patient suffers a cardiac arrest or stops breathing.

The official audit of 9,000 dying patients, conducted by the Royal College of Physicians, reveals that one-in-five families were not informed that a “do not resuscitate” order had been put in place - equivalent to the families of 40,000 patients.

The same study showed that in 16 per cent of cases, there was no record of a conversation with the dying patient, or explanation for the lack of one, for the decision to put in place a do not resuscitate order.

The audit is part of attempts to overhaul end-of-life care, with the axing of the discredited Liverpool Care Pathway.

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05 ... 0-dying-p/