SWMBO's dad had a DNR. The hospital ignored it. SWMBO read them the riot act with threat of lawsuit. They didn't ignore it a *second* time! Unless you have a "witness", there's no guarantee that they are playing by *your* rules.
[In SWMBO's case, the patient in the next bed told her -- in front of the attending nurse -- that he'd been resuscitated the night before. "Tread lightly..."]
Yes -- the "incentive"/rationalization being "he won't be with us MUCH longer, regardless"
Yes, again -- "We don't want to PROLONG how long we'll be providing all of the above!"
E.g., our friend had to have is implanted AED removed/disabled in order to be accepted by the hospice program. When "his time came", they didn't want the AED to unconditionally revive him!
At this point, I'm not really concerned with the actual details of what is involved. Rather, just trying to use these "events" (recommendation to enter hospice, point at which round-the-clock care is introduced, etc.) as milestones on the journey.
E.g., a buddy who handles disaster recover was describing the color code applied to the tags that are affixed to "patients" in triage. Jokingly, he said, "if you see a black tag on your body, you want to switch it with the guy NEXT to you, ASAP!"
(Black being indicative of dead/no hope)
Yes, and I've also heard that *they* can "kick you out" -- not dying fast enough.
So, what's the disincentive to leaving the program? Obviously, the care he receives after leaving will change. But, can he later rejoin? I.e., "Crap! I don't want to die NOW! Get me out of here so I can get emergency care... THEN, I'll come back (having eeked out a few more days along the way)"
EXCELLENT! Thank you!
It's been a while since it happened - he would have been about five hours behind Princess Diana in the queue for the Pearly Gates, back in 1997.
-- Bill Sloman, Sydney
Yes, after quitting hospice for ER treatment, he could rejoin again. I don't understand why, was a bit surprised that one could quit for ER care after signing the contract, and amazed that one could rejoin.
Why would he quit? The condition that qualifies him for hospice care is Parkinson's. He's unsteady. Can barely walk, or even stand, now. You don't go to the ER to take care of that.
But if he falls and breaks a hip, or cracks his head open, now *those* aren't Parkinson's Disease. He isn't required to quit hospice before receiving ER treatment for those injuries.
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