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Biomedical subjects

K Darr

Publications and source records attributed to K Darr.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Implementing advance directives: a continuing problem for provider organizations.

It has been suggested that widespread use of advance directives might encourage systematic rationing of healthcare, especially to the elderly. If a right to die becomes a duty to die, the living will and its progeny have become a Frankenstein monster. Indeed, public statements by state and federal officials that the elderly should be required to have living wills raised a storm of protest in the past. Regardless of true motives, such suggestions tend to be seen by the public as motivated by economics. The organization must be alert to the issues raised by advance directives. Managers are obliged to obey the law. Beyond that, however, they should work to enhance patient autonomy by facilitating preparation and availability of advance directives and surrogate decision making, should that become necessary.

Advance Directives↗
PubMed1996

Blessed are the flexible: the George Team.

Our educational efforts produced several intersecting interdisciplinary groups: faculty, students, faculty/students and our community sites, with faculty, clinical staff, and students. As we worked through the issues, these interdisciplinary teams found that commitment to change, caring for patients, and open, honest communication were essential to keeping the project teams on track. We have increased our understanding of both the complexity and value of interdisciplinary collaborative education. The LIT faculty provided the initial guidance and support, the students energized the process, and our community sites made our learning and our contributions readily available to our patient populations. It is not easy to learn and teach the language and tools of continuous improvement, but doing so infinitely improves the educational process and the clinical outcome. We must learn to carefully listen to each other so that our patients can fully reap the benefits of our interdisciplinary team efforts. As a result of what we learned, the members of the George Team have expanded our motto to "Blessed Are the Flexible--and the Perseverant!"

Community Health Services↗
PubMed1996

Limits of loyalty.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Duty to Warn↗
PubMed1996

Availability and use of advance directives.

Hospitals need to assure themselves that advance directives are available to caregivers, especially physicians, and that the patient's wishes expressed in them are being followed. This can be done only with data collection and analysis and improvement of the processes that support availability and use of advance directives. On a broader, societal perspective, it has been suggested that wide-spread use of advance directives such as natural death act declarations might encourage systematic rationing of healthcare to the elderly. If a right to die becomes a duty to die, the living will and its progeny, the natural death act declaration, will have become a Frankenstein monster. Indeed, in the mid-1980s the suggestion by then-governor Richard Lamm of Colorado, as well as officials at Health and Human Services that the elderly should be required to have living wills raised a storm of protest. Regardless of true motives, such suggestions are often seen as motivated by economics. The hospital must be alert to the ethical issues of advance directives, which are present regardless of a natural death act statute or a living will. Hospitals and their managers must consider these issues prospectively and develop policies that enable them to respect and meet patients' wishes, consistent with the organizational philosophy.

Advance Directives↗