Docs list who wouldn't get care in catastrophe: elderly, severly hurt and burned, dementia

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/05/05/pandemic.rationing.ap/index.html

Docs list who would be allowed to die in a catastrophe

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding whom to let die.

In the event of a mass-casualty situation, medical resources woul be have to be rationed.

Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.


People older than 85.

• Those with severe trauma, which could include critical injuries from car crashes and shootings.

• Severely burned patients older than 60.

• Those with severe mental impairment, which could include advanced Alzheimer's disease.

• Those with a severe chronic disease, such as advanced heart failure, lung disease or poorly controlled diabetes.

[Olney Blue]

1. It will be survival of the fittest, indeed.

[Clear Blue Sky]

2. Makes sense...

In an emergency situation like that, there will have to be triage.

[NCDem60]

3. Reality can be

harsh. When medical care is stretched to its breaking point hard choices have to be made. The military has always had a triage system at field hospitals. Basically they divide the wounded into three groups.

Group 1 will survive without immediate care.

Group 2 will only survive with medical intervention ASAP

Group 3 is so severely injured that survival is not likely.

The doctors concentrate on the second group and the other two groups have to wait until things calm down.

Sad but necessary.

[kestrel91316]

4. This is called triage, aka "dealing with reality".

Most Americans wouldn't know a REAL emergency crisis if it came up and bit them in the ass, sadly. So they can't imagine this happening and think it's mean or some such twaddle.

[Howardx]

7. exactly n/t

[Warpy]

5. Most hospital disaster plans reflect that

and not aggressively treating them doesn't mean not caring. Staff would be assigned to the terminal area and instructions were to be liberal with the morphine.

[rwheeler31]

6. Would it be possible to train more people?

[Luna_C_06]

8. Those with a severe chronic disease,

such as advanced heart failure, lung disease or poorly controlled diabetes.

Well, I'm fucked....