Editor’s Note: The goal of this column is to address ethical dilemmas faced by patients, families and healthcare professionals, offering careful analysis and recommendations that are consistent with biblical standards. The following ethical analysis is a commentary on a legal case that has caused some controversy in the clinical ethics community.

Column editor: Robert D. Orr, MD, CM, Consultant in Clinical Ethics, CBHD.

Question

The following consultation report is based on a real clinical dilemma that led to a request for an ethics consultation.  Some details have been changed to preserve patient privacy.  The goal of this column is to address ethical dilemmas faced by patients, families and healthcare professionals, offering careful analysis and recommendations that are consistent with biblical standards.  The format and length are intended to simulate an actual consultation report that might appear in a clinical record and are not i