I wrote the following reflection at the end of my palliative care rotation in December. It was in response to a clerkship essay assignment in which I wrote about the value of having a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) order in place for terminally ill cancer patients.
On second thought, I can see the value of a full code status order when living with terminal illness: peace of mind, a glimmer of hope, and preserving the “will” to live for the patient. Being full code means someone else— likely the MPOA but also maybe the entire family— will have to decide when it’s time for their family member to die; in some way, the patient is abdicating their individual choice regarding how and when they die and deferring it to others.
Bizarre but somehow comforting, I’d assume. Full code might mean valuing not giving up in the fight, collective decision making, and having a strong warrior spirit throughout illness. It might signal to the family that their loved one is unwilling to leave them or give up on them.
But could a DNR be something that seems scary and “wrong” simply due to lack of education? What if their ideas of DNR are simply incomplete and/or skewed by misperception? What if they knew a DNR could be a family decision *before* crisis strikes? What if the grief of dying could be dealt with early and not left to the symbolic gesture of love that full code status affords?
karuṇā 