Hi there!
Today’s article is about, “Quick Tip for Families
in Intensive Care: Intimidated into the ICU Team Wanting to Take My Sister Off Life Support and Letting Her Die! Help!”
You may also watch the video here on our website https://intensivecarehotline.com/blog/quick-tip-for-families-in-intensive-care-intimidated-into-the-icu-team-wanting-to-take-my-sister-off-life-support-and-letting-her-die-help/ or you can continue reading the article below.
Quick Tip for Families in Intensive Care: Intimidated into the ICU Team Wanting to Take My Sister Off Life Support and Letting Her Die! Help!
Hi, it’s Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com with another quick tip for families in intensive care.
Today, I have an email from John who says, “I am intimidated by the intensive care team wanting to take my sister off life support in intensive care and let her die. What should I
do?”
John, I’m very sorry to hear that. Those are incredibly difficult situations and I know from experience after having worked in intensive care for nearly 25 years in three different countries that this is an absolutely challenging situation, and it hits you like a brick wall when faced with a situation like that.
Now, from your location, I can see the state that you are in in the U.S., and I can assure you that the intensive care team cannot take your sister off life support, assuming that you are the power of attorney, without your consent. Also, if your sister has an advanced care plan that suggests that she wants everything to be done once again, this needs to be taken into consideration. Many courts have put a stop to situations like this if you took these to courts.
So, there are a number of things you can do besides being intimidated. There’s actually no need to be intimidated. You need to step into your own power and take matters into your own hand and we can help you with that. We have helped so many families in intensive care to put a stop to situations like that with our consulting and advocacy by being specialized on patient and family rights in intensive care.
There has even been a case, I think, in 2013 when you look at the Jahi McMath case where supposedly Jahi was brain dead, but the court ruled that the child may not be brain dead and they allowed the hospital not to remove life support. So, there’s plenty of cases out there where the courts have put a stop to that but there’s also plenty of cases out there where we put a stop to that. We are not lawyers; we are just clinicians specialized on patient and family advocacy
in intensive care.
You can have a look at our testimonial section. You can have a look at our podcast section with client interviews. We’ve never really lost a client as long as clients can
follow instructions and put things in place that need to be put in place. So don’t be intimidated, take action. Give us a call here at intensivecarehotline.com.
The first thing that we need to do in a situation like that is establish whether it’s a “real” or a “perceived” end-of-life situation. Very quickly, a real end-of-life situation is that no treatment, no surgery, no medication, and no lifesaving equipment will save your sister’s life, that’s a real end of life situation. Many
patients in intensive care, however, are in what I refer to as perceived end-of-life situations, it’s a perception. As long as treatment keeps going, life, most of the time, can be sustained and then it’s a waiting game whether someone can wake up or whether someone needs to tracheostomy.
I know your sister might already have a tracheostomy ; I don’t know, you haven’t shared those details. But as long as there’s life, there is hope. Also, every time the intensive care team is telling you, “Well, your family member won’t survive.” Well, every day they are surviving, that’s a win for you and your family. You have to look at the situation like that from many different
angles.
So, that is my quick tip for today.
Because we get so many questions from families in intensive care that’s why we created a membership for families of critically ill patients in intensive care and you can become a member if you go to intensivecarehotline.com by clicking on the membership link or by going to intensivecaresupport.org directly. In the membership, you have access to me and my team, 24 hours a day, in a membership area and via email, and we answer all questions intensive care related.
Like I said, I have worked in intensive care for nearly 25 years in three different countries where I also worked as a nurse manager for over 5 years in intensive care. I have been consulting and advocating for families in intensive care all around the world since 2013.
You can see on our testimonial section at intensivecarehotline.com what our clients say. You can also watch our podcast on our podcast section at intensivecarehotline.com what our clients say there. Like I said, without any exaggeration, we have saved many lives with our interventions.
That’s why I also offer one-on-one consulting and advocacy over the phone, Skype, Zoom, WhatsApp, whichever medium works best for you. I talk to you and your families directly. I talk to doctors and nurses directly. I’ll make sure you make informed decisions, you have peace of mind, control, power, and influence that your loved one gets best care and treatment. I also talk to doctors and nurses directly, and I make sure I ask
all the questions that you haven’t even considered asking but must be asked, once again, for you to make informed decisions, have peace of mind, control, power, and influence.
We also offer medical record
reviews in real time so that you can get a second opinion in real time. We also offer medical record reviews after intensive care if you have unanswered questions, if you need closure, or if you are suspecting medical negligence.
All of that you get at intensivecarehotline.com. Call us on one of the numbers on the top of our
website or send us an email to support@intensivecarehotline.com.
If you like my videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel for regular updates for families in intensive
care. Click the like button, click the notification bell, and share the video with your friends and families. I also do a YouTube live every week where you can ask questions live on the show. Sign up to my email newsletter at intensivecarehotline.com and you will get notifications for the YouTube lives. Comment below what you want to see next, what questions and insights you have.
Thanks for watching.
This is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and I will talk to you in a few days.
Take care for now.
