Air date: November 1, 2009

Host: Steve Bogdewic, PhD

Email
Share this segment
Download MP3

Interview: Greg A. Sachs, MD
Chief, Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, IU School of Medicine

You’ve no doubt heard of "do not resuscitate" or DNR orders, the instructions given to hospital employees that a patient has chosen not to receive extraordinary measures such as intubation near the end of life.

But those orders typically only apply inside the hospital.

For patients at home or in a nursing home, caregivers need a different set of instructions: physicians’ orders that can travel with a patient, to make clear what kinds of care an individual wants and doesn’t want in those final days.

State laws differ on the so-called "outpatient DNR" orders, so Dr. Greg Sachs of the IU School of Medicine sits down with Sound Medicine's Steve Bogdewic to explain the basics.

Several states (although not Indiana) have a program called Physicians Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, or POLST. The purpose of POLST is to avoid situations where the wishes of dying patients clash with doctors' orders wishes. The form clearly states what the patient desires, and travels with him or her from the hospital to home, or wherever.

Additional Resources:

• Read more about Dr. Sachs's research in palliative care for patients with dementia in the IUSM newsroom.
• Download the Do Not Resuscitate form for Indiana residents. (PDF)
• Learn more about POLST in your state, and find downloadable forms, from this web site.

Comments

No comments yet