Is the patient only the patient? How does the family factor in here? Who counts as family? Relatedly, what obligations does a patient have to a family? The family to the patient? To the community?
The patient is the person who will make the decisions on what treatment the patient does ans does not want to have. Until the patient can no longer make the decision on their own, they will appoint someone close to them to make the choices for them. This is where the family becomes involved they can have influence on what they patient should do but they are not the final say in what happens. The patient has the obligations to their family to make the whole situation easier because the family will fed off of the patient. For example my grandfather was in a declining healthy for the last year of his life. He was battling esophagus cancer and he began to lose a great deal of weight and during this time before his death he was very frustrated because he is not a person to ask others to help but he literally could not do it on his own. I could see the pain in all of my dad's brothers and sisters they wanted to help but they did not know how so they waited by his side and did whatever he would ask in a heart beat.
I do agree with the point that the patient has his or her own well-being. An individual should be able to make autonomous decisions about their own life. Now I do think if the person is unable to make a clear decision the healthcare proxy has the final say, but that proxy is not obligated to do anything. They should want to make the best decisions for their family members, but they aren't forced to do so.
I agree that the patient should be who decides on the treatments they receive. Of course like Casey said that isn't always an option for some patients due to various things. There can be someone who that patient has chosen to then make decisions or family will be asked to decide if no one was chosen. To me, family is not just the biological family but also can just be people you are as close to or closer to then family. The people in your lives you love and many would say they would do anything for. I also agree that they should chose what is best for them although obviously this won't always happen. The patient has a responsibility to the loved ones to be honest with them on the situation and let them know when they truly need help while the family is responsible for helping and supporting the patient.
The patient is the individual who is in need of care. If the patient is capable, they making their decisions but if not, the proxy or appointed family member makes such decisions. Children and elderly are usually the ones who need a family member present. I believe that the family is who the patient wants with them. People do not like their blood relatives, but have a better familial connection to others. Those are the people who are their family- the ones they love and care about on a daily basis. The patient has the obligation to want to get better and want to survive whatever illness they are suffering from. But the family also has the responsibility to respect the wishes of the patient.
For once I agree strongly with Katelin. Family members have the responsibility to respect the patient's wishes. Just because they don't want to see the person die doesn't mean that they can just disregard that individual's pride if they don't want to be hooked up to machines just to maintain a pulse. I also agree with Katelin's point on family. Family are the people you best get along with and care about, not necessarily bound by blood relations.
I also agree with Katelin. Family has the responsibility to respect the wishes of the patient. Just because the family doesn't want to see the person die, it is not their choice, as long as the patient has a voice of his/her own to take themselves of life support.
I agree with all of the above. It is important that if the patient is able to make decisions, then he or she does what they believe is best for them and if they are unable to make decisions then hopefully they have someone that knows their wishes and that is able to respect them. If a patient is left without any family or they just dont like their family then hopefully they have someone that they care about that will make the best decision for them.
I agree with Katelin especially the point on family not necessarily being blood. This question makes me think of who would be at our own death bed and who would be there and who we would want there because i definitely believe at least personally that those groups would be larger than i want and it is because of my relationship with my blood relatives and my real family. When i woke up in the hospital after a horrible car accident the only thing i could think was where is my roommate is he okay and when they let me out of bed my blood relatives were in the room but waiting outside were all of my roommates and that was who truly made me happy to still be alive. Families have a job to make the patient as comfortable as possible and the biggest thing they can do is understand what the patient wants. If a patient wants 500 people at his or her bed day and night the family should try and make that possible but if the patient just wants to go to sleep and have his or her family to go home and get some rest than that is what they should do.
Realistically, I feel like the only people that are really "obligated" are the health care providers. It is there job to care for patients and see that the medical procedures are in the best interest of the patient.
That being said, I don't think it is right to not care for family members or friends, but there are no disciplinary actions that you are going to receive for not caring for a family member. You will have to deal with guilt of letting a family member struggle, but you will not go to jail. If a physician refuses to care for his or her patient, they will most likely lose their license.
It just depends on the patient are they able to make the decisions or do they need a person to make them for them. The family factors in there because its there love one and they care about them and don't want to lose them. I guess the patient has to live as long as they can. the family's obligation is that the patient gets the best possible treatment and they aren't suffering a lot.
The patient is ultimatelty in charge of what treatment he or her wants. If that person is not able to make those decsions for themselves that is when that persons proxy or appointed family member that person trusts with his or her's life. When it comes to wjho is the family i agree with what Katelin and Mac had to say. The family is whoever that patient wants to be with them rather it's a group of their friends or actual blood relatives. When it comes to obligations between the patient and the family it's really hard to have an answer for, therefore I don't have one. All i know is that it's between the patient and their family to say what obligations there are.
I think that the patient it the patient and that they have no other responsibilities. I don't think it is right for them to think that they have a responsibility to die for others in their community or even their family. I think that is wrong. If a patient is dying on their own accord I think that is the upmost responsibility for them.
I agree with Shelbie, in regard, to the patients responsibilities. We will never know what a person is going through until we are in that situation. It would be wrong to have the patient die based on the belief's of their family or community. The family and community can sympathize with the patient, but they can not truly know what the patient is going through, until they go through it themselves.
For me I believe that the patient is the only patient, family should not factor into any medical based decision unless that person is the parent or the next of kin when the person is in a coma. The obligations a patient has to his or her family is to listen to what they have to say and use their input in whatever decisions the patient has to make. That patient should think of the consequences his or her actions will have on their family and on their community. The patient is not just deciding what will happen to them but what will happen to their family.
For me, I believe that the only patient is the patient, unless a proxy or otherwise alternative is chosen. ( such as a mother's child being their proxy.) The family should be given as many rights as within reason, and to me, family is anybody who really cared about the patient. I have family members, actual flesh and blood, who probably could not be bothered with me if I were struck ill, but I have many a friend who I have known most my life, who would go almost as far as a sibling. In terms of obligations, I believe the patient is obligated to give the family, an explanation, either through will, or other such means, as to what is going on or planned, if it can be done way ahead of time, that would be great. but I believe the family has more obligations to the patient, thus being, patience, understanding, acceptance, and lenience. the patient is not just dying, but is leaving people behind, and as such, owes them a reason, or an explanation for everything they are doing. while the family just needs to be there, and listen.
I believe that the only patient is the patient. I believe that family should be given certain rights to the patient but not one that allows them to make a decision on life and death. I believe family is anybody that stays in continuous contact with the patient and truly cares about them. I believe that the patients obligation to their family is giving them some sort of knowledge about living or dying in a serious situation. The family's obligations to the patients is to be their to support the patient. They should honor the patients decision to live or die. I do not think a patient has an obligation to the community.
The patient is the person who is being treated or is in need of care. The family should be given right to make decisions but only if the person is unable to make decisions on their own. The family may know whats best for the patient, but in the end if they are capable it is ultimatly their decision on what they want. The patient has a obligation to the family to listen to them and take their advice into consideration when making decisions. When we are put in a situation that is stressful we make very unrational decisions and we sometimes need another party to help us clear our heads and make sense of what is really going on. The family has the obligation to make the best decisions for the patient. Even if means going against what they want. A patient obligation to the community is something that I have not really thought about.
I agree with Emily that if the patient is well enough they should make their own choice and if they cannot than they "family" should make the choice but do them for the better of the patient. They should always make decisions based on good of the patient not for themselves.
The patient is the only patient because they are the primary one who is going through whatever illness they have. Sure it affects the family of the patient but they are not being treated for an illness. First and foremost the patient is the one who has to deal with this illness head on, the family has a responsibility to be there for them but the patient does not always have the support of family for whatever reason. If the patient is incapable of making their own decisions then the rights to do so needs to be proxy'd off to a family member or someone that the patient trusts.
If you are to define a patient as an entity that receives information and assistance from a physician or medical professional then the family and loved ones of the individual could be considered patients. That is, if the family acknowledges what is presented to them and acts upon it. Family is not necessarily limited to legal or blood relations; close family friends can be considered members in times of hardship and death. The individual patient is ‘obligated’ to present his or her needs and desires as clearly as possible while realizing the possible limitations of those around. The family is ‘obligated’ to ensure that the individual is placed under the best possible care, within reason. Also, the family is responsible for the comfort of the patient.
In this instance, I want to say that the patient is the person that makes the decisions about what should happen to him or her but I also feel you need to keep the family or close friends. So from this I do think that family should at least have some say or perspective when being involved. The people who count as family should be up to the patient, they should choose who they want around them. I think the obligation that the patient has to his or her family is to keep them in mind in some way and not make decisions that could scar someone for a long time. At the same time the family's obligations should to comfort the patient who they are there for and make the remaining time they could or could not have meaningful.
The patient is the one who is receiving some type of care from the physician. I think the family should be aware of every step that is made though. Being left in the dark is never a good thing and would never result in a positive outcome, especially when it has to do with the familie's loved one dying. With the question, who is considered family though, this is hard. I am a strong believer in gay rights and equal rights, and if a gay couple is not married (which around here they wouldn't be) how would that life partner get any rights? They wouldn't. They also wouldn't get the same visitation rights as other family members, but the might be way closer to the patient than the rest of the family. Its tricky because just because someone is "blood" related or "family" or a spouse, doesn't mean that there isn't someone out there who isn't any of those things who doesn't want to see the patient any less than a family member would.
When the patient is completely capable of making their own decisions by themselves, then they are the patient. However, when it becomes an issue of being able to speak, or being able to move, or being conscious of the environment around them, then the family now becomes part of the patient as well because they have to make the decision for that loved one. I think the people who count as family are the ones who are blood related. They are your family because they have the same blood as you. That's not to say that a friend can't be family, but they technically aren't from the same family as you. I think a patient should feel obligated to let their family know that they are okay with dying and that they want their family to be able to let him or her go. It's one thing to be suffering and another thing to just suddenly get sick. The family should feel obligated to comfort the patient because no one knows how much longer the patient has to live. So from that moment and on, the family should be there one hundred percent.
The patient is the person who will make the decisions on what treatment the patient does ans does not want to have. Until the patient can no longer make the decision on their own, they will appoint someone close to them to make the choices for them. This is where the family becomes involved they can have influence on what they patient should do but they are not the final say in what happens. The patient has the obligations to their family to make the whole situation easier because the family will fed off of the patient.
ReplyDeleteFor example my grandfather was in a declining healthy for the last year of his life. He was battling esophagus cancer and he began to lose a great deal of weight and during this time before his death he was very frustrated because he is not a person to ask others to help but he literally could not do it on his own. I could see the pain in all of my dad's brothers and sisters they wanted to help but they did not know how so they waited by his side and did whatever he would ask in a heart beat.
I do agree with the point that the patient has his or her own well-being. An individual should be able to make autonomous decisions about their own life. Now I do think if the person is unable to make a clear decision the healthcare proxy has the final say, but that proxy is not obligated to do anything. They should want to make the best decisions for their family members, but they aren't forced to do so.
DeleteI agree that the patient should be who decides on the treatments they receive. Of course like Casey said that isn't always an option for some patients due to various things. There can be someone who that patient has chosen to then make decisions or family will be asked to decide if no one was chosen. To me, family is not just the biological family but also can just be people you are as close to or closer to then family. The people in your lives you love and many would say they would do anything for. I also agree that they should chose what is best for them although obviously this won't always happen. The patient has a responsibility to the loved ones to be honest with them on the situation and let them know when they truly need help while the family is responsible for helping and supporting the patient.
DeleteThe patient is the individual who is in need of care. If the patient is capable, they making their decisions but if not, the proxy or appointed family member makes such decisions. Children and elderly are usually the ones who need a family member present. I believe that the family is who the patient wants with them. People do not like their blood relatives, but have a better familial connection to others. Those are the people who are their family- the ones they love and care about on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteThe patient has the obligation to want to get better and want to survive whatever illness they are suffering from. But the family also has the responsibility to respect the wishes of the patient.
For once I agree strongly with Katelin. Family members have the responsibility to respect the patient's wishes. Just because they don't want to see the person die doesn't mean that they can just disregard that individual's pride if they don't want to be hooked up to machines just to maintain a pulse. I also agree with Katelin's point on family. Family are the people you best get along with and care about, not necessarily bound by blood relations.
DeleteI also agree with Katelin. Family has the responsibility to respect the wishes of the patient. Just because the family doesn't want to see the person die, it is not their choice, as long as the patient has a voice of his/her own to take themselves of life support.
DeleteI agree with all of the above. It is important that if the patient is able to make decisions, then he or she does what they believe is best for them and if they are unable to make decisions then hopefully they have someone that knows their wishes and that is able to respect them. If a patient is left without any family or they just dont like their family then hopefully they have someone that they care about that will make the best decision for them.
DeleteI agree with Katelin especially the point on family not necessarily being blood. This question makes me think of who would be at our own death bed and who would be there and who we would want there because i definitely believe at least personally that those groups would be larger than i want and it is because of my relationship with my blood relatives and my real family. When i woke up in the hospital after a horrible car accident the only thing i could think was where is my roommate is he okay and when they let me out of bed my blood relatives were in the room but waiting outside were all of my roommates and that was who truly made me happy to still be alive. Families have a job to make the patient as comfortable as possible and the biggest thing they can do is understand what the patient wants. If a patient wants 500 people at his or her bed day and night the family should try and make that possible but if the patient just wants to go to sleep and have his or her family to go home and get some rest than that is what they should do.
ReplyDeleteRealistically, I feel like the only people that are really "obligated" are the health care providers. It is there job to care for patients and see that the medical procedures are in the best interest of the patient.
DeleteThat being said, I don't think it is right to not care for family members or friends, but there are no disciplinary actions that you are going to receive for not caring for a family member. You will have to deal with guilt of letting a family member struggle, but you will not go to jail. If a physician refuses to care for his or her patient, they will most likely lose their license.
It just depends on the patient are they able to make the decisions or do they need a person to make them for them. The family factors in there because its there love one and they care about them and don't want to lose them. I guess the patient has to live as long as they can. the family's obligation is that the patient gets the best possible treatment and they aren't suffering a lot.
ReplyDeleteThe patient is ultimatelty in charge of what treatment he or her wants. If that person is not able to make those decsions for themselves that is when that persons proxy or appointed family member that person trusts with his or her's life. When it comes to wjho is the family i agree with what Katelin and Mac had to say. The family is whoever that patient wants to be with them rather it's a group of their friends or actual blood relatives. When it comes to obligations between the patient and the family it's really hard to have an answer for, therefore I don't have one. All i know is that it's between the patient and their family to say what obligations there are.
ReplyDeleteI think that the patient it the patient and that they have no other responsibilities. I don't think it is right for them to think that they have a responsibility to die for others in their community or even their family. I think that is wrong. If a patient is dying on their own accord I think that is the upmost responsibility for them.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Shelbie, in regard, to the patients responsibilities. We will never know what a person is going through until we are in that situation. It would be wrong to have the patient die based on the belief's of their family or community. The family and community can sympathize with the patient, but they can not truly know what the patient is going through, until they go through it themselves.
DeleteFor me I believe that the patient is the only patient, family should not factor into any medical based decision unless that person is the parent or the next of kin when the person is in a coma. The obligations a patient has to his or her family is to listen to what they have to say and use their input in whatever decisions the patient has to make. That patient should think of the consequences his or her actions will have on their family and on their community. The patient is not just deciding what will happen to them but what will happen to their family.
ReplyDeleteFor me, I believe that the only patient is the patient, unless a proxy or otherwise alternative is chosen. ( such as a mother's child being their proxy.)
ReplyDeleteThe family should be given as many rights as within reason, and to me, family is anybody who really cared about the patient.
I have family members, actual flesh and blood, who probably could not be bothered with me if I were struck ill, but I have many a friend who I have known most my life, who would go almost as far as a sibling.
In terms of obligations, I believe the patient is obligated to give the family, an explanation, either through will, or other such means, as to what is going on or planned, if it can be done way ahead of time, that would be great.
but I believe the family has more obligations to the patient, thus being, patience, understanding, acceptance, and lenience.
the patient is not just dying, but is leaving people behind, and as such, owes them a reason, or an explanation for everything they are doing.
while the family just needs to be there, and listen.
I believe that the only patient is the patient. I believe that family should be given certain rights to the patient but not one that allows them to make a decision on life and death. I believe family is anybody that stays in continuous contact with the patient and truly cares about them. I believe that the patients obligation to their family is giving them some sort of knowledge about living or dying in a serious situation. The family's obligations to the patients is to be their to support the patient. They should honor the patients decision to live or die. I do not think a patient has an obligation to the community.
ReplyDeleteThe patient is the person who is being treated or is in need of care. The family should be given right to make decisions but only if the person is unable to make decisions on their own. The family may know whats best for the patient, but in the end if they are capable it is ultimatly their decision on what they want. The patient has a obligation to the family to listen to them and take their advice into consideration when making decisions. When we are put in a situation that is stressful we make very unrational decisions and we sometimes need another party to help us clear our heads and make sense of what is really going on. The family has the obligation to make the best decisions for the patient. Even if means going against what they want. A patient obligation to the community is something that I have not really thought about.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Emily that if the patient is well enough they should make their own choice and if they cannot than they "family" should make the choice but do them for the better of the patient. They should always make decisions based on good of the patient not for themselves.
DeleteThe patient is the only patient because they are the primary one who is going through whatever illness they have. Sure it affects the family of the patient but they are not being treated for an illness. First and foremost the patient is the one who has to deal with this illness head on, the family has a responsibility to be there for them but the patient does not always have the support of family for whatever reason. If the patient is incapable of making their own decisions then the rights to do so needs to be proxy'd off to a family member or someone that the patient trusts.
ReplyDeleteIf you are to define a patient as an entity that receives information and assistance from a physician or medical professional then the family and loved ones of the individual could be considered patients. That is, if the family acknowledges what is presented to them and acts upon it. Family is not necessarily limited to legal or blood relations; close family friends can be considered members in times of hardship and death. The individual patient is ‘obligated’ to present his or her needs and desires as clearly as possible while realizing the possible limitations of those around. The family is ‘obligated’ to ensure that the individual is placed under the best possible care, within reason. Also, the family is responsible for the comfort of the patient.
ReplyDeleteIn this instance, I want to say that the patient is the person that makes the decisions about what should happen to him or her but I also feel you need to keep the family or close friends. So from this I do think that family should at least have some say or perspective when being involved. The people who count as family should be up to the patient, they should choose who they want around them. I think the obligation that the patient has to his or her family is to keep them in mind in some way and not make decisions that could scar someone for a long time. At the same time the family's obligations should to comfort the patient who they are there for and make the remaining time they could or could not have meaningful.
ReplyDeleteThe patient is the one who is receiving some type of care from the physician. I think the family should be aware of every step that is made though. Being left in the dark is never a good thing and would never result in a positive outcome, especially when it has to do with the familie's loved one dying.
ReplyDeleteWith the question, who is considered family though, this is hard. I am a strong believer in gay rights and equal rights, and if a gay couple is not married (which around here they wouldn't be) how would that life partner get any rights? They wouldn't. They also wouldn't get the same visitation rights as other family members, but the might be way closer to the patient than the rest of the family. Its tricky because just because someone is "blood" related or "family" or a spouse, doesn't mean that there isn't someone out there who isn't any of those things who doesn't want to see the patient any less than a family member would.
When the patient is completely capable of making their own decisions by themselves, then they are the patient. However, when it becomes an issue of being able to speak, or being able to move, or being conscious of the environment around them, then the family now becomes part of the patient as well because they have to make the decision for that loved one. I think the people who count as family are the ones who are blood related. They are your family because they have the same blood as you. That's not to say that a friend can't be family, but they technically aren't from the same family as you. I think a patient should feel obligated to let their family know that they are okay with dying and that they want their family to be able to let him or her go. It's one thing to be suffering and another thing to just suddenly get sick. The family should feel obligated to comfort the patient because no one knows how much longer the patient has to live. So from that moment and on, the family should be there one hundred percent.
ReplyDelete