Choices About Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in the Hospital: When Do Physicians Talk With Patients?

Abstract

A survey of physicians caring for 154 patients who had undergone cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston revealed that, although most supported patient participation in decisions concerning CPR, only one-third of the physicians had consulted the patients' families and only 19% had discussed resuscitation with the patients themselves. Nevertheless, 68% of the physicians expressed an opinion on their patients' preferences. These opinions correlated only weakly with the preferences expressed in interviews with the 24 competent, discharged survivors of CPR. The authors suggest that it may benefit both physicians and patients to address the issue of CPR routinely on admission to the hospital. (KIE abstract)