Ethics and Policy
An ongoing debate exists as to how much care, if any, patients in a persistent vegetative state should receive in health system plagued by limited resources. In a case before the New Jersey Superior Court, Betancourt v. Trinitas, a community hospital sought a ruling that dialysis and CPR for such a patient constitutes futile care. An American bioethicist, Jacob M. Appel, argued that any money spent treating PVS patients would be better spent on other patients with a higher likelihood of recovery. The patient died naturally prior to a decision in the case, resulting in the court finding the issue moot.
Read more about this topic: Persistent Vegetative State
Famous quotes containing the words ethics and, ethics and/or policy:
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