National POLST Response to New York Times Article on Filing Suit for ‘Wrongful Life’
National POLST has released a press release in response to a New York Times article, " Filing Suit for ‘Wrongful Life’."
The article shares how patients and families can be harmed when a system fails to honor a patient’s stated treatment wishes, as documented on a portable medical order or POLST form (called a Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment or MOLST in New York State). The Greenbergs’ tragic experience is one that could have been avoided if Mr. Greenberg’s portable medical order had been honored.
National POLST talks further about the POLST process noting that, "The critical part of the POLST process is the conversation that takes place between a patient who has a life-limiting condition, their loved ones and their providers. Together, this group makes decisions about preferred treatments, based on the patient’s current diagnosis, prognosis and goals...The patient’s wishes, translated into medical orders, are then clear to emergency responders or other health care providers. What is clear from the cases in the New York Times article is that a good conversation and clear documentation are NOT enough."
To read National POLST's press release on this article, click here.
To read the article, click here.
To learn more about National POLST, click here.
