The Difficulty of End-of-Life Decision-Making for Healthcare Agents

     I came across this informative, but heart-wrenching article by ProPublica reporter Charles Ornstein titled "A Mother's Death Tested Reporter's Thinking About End-Of Life Care".  We've discussed the importance of having an advance health care directive that memorializes your end-of-life decisions in the event you aren't able to communicate them yourself.  But even though your instructions are clear, your healthcare agent still has to make the decision of when to cease life support.  
     As Mr. Ornstein attests, the correct timing can sometimes be difficult to determine.  The agent will likely be relying on physician's opinions about the state of the patient and the chances of recuperation.  But doctors are not infallible.  There are countless stories of people making improbable recoveries that fly in the face of a doctor's prognosis.  Still, additional procedures must be weighed against the likelihood of success and the patient's wishes.  
     So what is the agent and family members to do?  In my opinion, Mr. Ornstein took the right approach.  He, his sister and father decided to be thorough and take their time.  They sought medical opinions from additional professionals and had other tests done.  After all options were explored and discussed, they made their decision.  Having an advance health care directive is half the battle.  The other half is relying on your healthcare agent to gather and digest as much information as possible to make levelheaded, thoughtful decisions in a situation fraught with emotion.  Therefore, choose your healthcare agent wisely and do not be afraid to discuss your end-of-life desires with your agent and successor agents.