Emergency physicians' role in end-of-life care

Abstract

End-of-life care, as it merges with emergency medicine, raises as many ethical issues as it does clinical judgments. The role of the ED physician as it pertains to end-of-life treatment options encompasses a vast array of variables that should nevertheless center on patient welfare. The choice between ethical responses and trained reactions is an ever-present reality in emergency medicine, and the instinct to perform aggressive procedures may overshadow the professional purpose to inform, comfort, counsel, and treat. The exercise of clinical judgment should be balanced by previously reasoned ethical conduct codes when it comes to end-of-life emergent care.