Asunto(s)
Directivas Anticipadas/legislación & jurisprudencia , Consentimiento Informado/legislación & jurisprudencia , Menores/legislación & jurisprudencia , Participación del Paciente/legislación & jurisprudencia , Adolescente , Toma de Decisiones , Homicidio/legislación & jurisprudencia , Humanos , Competencia Mental , Consentimiento Paterno/legislación & jurisprudencia , Órdenes de Resucitación/legislación & jurisprudencia , Negativa del Paciente al Tratamiento/legislación & jurisprudencia , West VirginiaRESUMEN
KIE: The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals held that a hospital was not liable for the failure of a privately-retained physician to obtain informed consent for a "do not resuscitate" (DNR) order. Therefore, the parents of a deceased patient were unsuccessful in their wrongful death lawsuit against the hospital at which their 17-year-old son's private physician had treated him. The physician had issued a DNR order for the young man, who had muscular dystrophy and recurring respiratory failure. Although the parents had signed a consent form, they later contended that their son should have been consulted prior to the issuance of the DNR order. The appellate court held that, in determining the liability of the physician, the trial court should have instructed the jury about the concept of a "mature minor," in which children in certain circumstances are considered capable of giving consent to medical treatment.^ieng