Abstract
Patient autonomy may be placed at odds with the “rescue mentality” of EMS personnel when they are summoned and an out-of-hospital do not resuscitate order (DNR) is in place. This is exacerbated when a valid patient DNR order and a patient suicide attempt exist concurrently. This paper explores the two medical ethics principles of autonomy and beneficence placed at risk and the moral considerations for EMS personnel when a valid out-of-hospital DNR, a patient attempt at suicide, and a call to 911 intersect in the same temporal period.
Recommended Citation
Sine, D. M. (2010). EMS, Suicide, and the Out-of-Hospital DNR Order. Journal of Health Ethics, 6(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.18785/ojhe.0601.02
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