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These are questions we would rather not think about. Do I want to be treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) if I am seriously ill? Do I want to be on a ventilator? Do I even want to go to the hospital? Doctors call for you to discuss these questions with your loved one now.
Due to the corona virus, many patients are currently in the ICU. This is normally preceded by a conversation with an IC doctor, shortly after doctors have assessed whether admission is medically feasible. But patients with the coronavirus are often very short of breath, which means that a conversation with the doctor is not always possible. According to Evert de Jonge, head of the intensive care unit of the Leiden University Medical Center and Monika Kerckhoffs, internist-intensivist of the UMC Utrecht in podcast The Day of NPORadio1. According to them, it would therefore be good as a patient to already think about what you want and to discuss this with family members before you become ill.
Peace
According to epidemiologist Jenny T. van der Steen, associated with the Leiden University Medical Center, such a conversation can also ‘bring peace of mind and prevent regrets in family’. she writes in De Volkskrant.
To establish
A partner or a close relative can make medical choices for you in the event of a serious illness. But it is also possible to record treatment wishes in advance. Some GPs are now taking the lead themselves by calling vulnerable patients and asking what they want if they contract the coronavirus. It is also possible to contact your GP about this yourself, ask for a discussion about proactive care planning. Or have your wishes recorded in an advance directive.
The so-called Treatment Passport also made the news this week. Here you can read all about it.
Trust in others
However, not everyone wants to decide in advance about future medical treatments. This is how Gert van Dijk, ethicist at the KNMG and the Erasmus MC in Medical Contact that he prefers to leave that decision to doctors and relatives. “If I were to draw up an advance directive, I would actually do so out of a suspicion that doctors and my loved ones will let things happen to me that I would rather not. And that is a bad thought. I would rather trust that the people around me that moment will make the right choices for me.”
He also mentions another argument for not drawing up an advance directive. How can you determine from the perspective of now what you want later? If he takes dementia. “If I were to say anything about what should be done when I have dementia, I will inevitably do so from the perspective of someone without dementia. As I used to judge the life I currently lead with the eyes of a young person. (.. .) In doing so I would be doing injustice to who I am in the future, as I have done injustice to my present self in the past.”
Rack
Does your loved one know what treatment you want if you become seriously ill? Or are you consciously not discussing that? Respond to our statement.
Statement: My loved one knows what treatment I still want if I become seriously ill
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