We are fulltimers and residents of South Dakota. Has anyone addressed the issue of how to obtain a DNR bracelet, and whether or not a bracelet would be sufficient while traveling, to inform EMS personal of your wishes. Any info on this subject will be greatly apperciated.
I would be very, very surprised if a DNR bracelet would suffice if they even exist. DNR forms are serious business requiring lengthy definitions of just when the DNR order is appropriate, requires signatures & witnesses, etc.
A bracelet containing all that info. would be very big indeed.
This is a tough one. I did a little Googling and found a bunch of info. It looks like states have different forms for the DNR. I did a search for a "national DNR" and came up with nothing. There was even a picture of a woman that had the DNR info tatooed on the chest!
Just to throw some things in the pile for thought. The American Red Cross no longer teaches first aiders to look for pulse in a unconscious individual. If you are called to assist and the victim is not breathing, begin CPR. Thus, if you have a DNR bracelet, do you wish assistance to be withheld if you have a choking accident, and drowning accident, if you faint from the heat? Do you really intend to give up life in a survivable situation? Perhaps it would be better to talk with your attorney, doctor, or family member, and establish a protocol for life threatening situations. Then just carry a tag with "ICE call....." Again, just a thought. Happy Trails.
I have never heard of a DNR bracelet. If help were to be called the assumption is that help is wanted. If at an accident scene this is also the assumption. Once CPR is started as an EMT I would be required to continue until a higher authority assumed controlled. I've had a DNR used once while in an ambulance and that was only after the doc at the hospital assumed control and gave the order. DNR's are usually honored by hospitals, but not in the field by EMT's and Parametics.
I would "assume" that all a DNR bracelet would do would be to alert the medical personnel that such a form existed, and all information would not be on the actual bracelet. I remember that my folks had a DNR sign posted on their wall that did not include a whole lot of information. I think we are confusing living wills here with DNR advisories?
bumpy
In New York state, at least, there is a standard DNR bracelet that looks a lot like a Medic Alert bracelet, that can only be bought from a very short list of vendors (including Medic Alert). Purchase requires presentation of a doctor's signed nonhospital DNR order. Massachusetts has a similar arrangement, called Comfort Care. Most doctors will sign these forms only for patients with terminal conditions, so secondary risks like choking or drowning are minor considerations.
In Wisconsin - as many other states - we have a physician ordered DNR. This is the ONLY recognized Do Not Resuscitate. Wisconsin DHFS has allowed that the "patient" can have a commercially produced medic alert type of bracelet, which is more like jewelery, but gets the point across, kind of like for a diabetic or a person on blood thinners.
Anyway, if you wish to be designated for a DNR, talk to your primary doctor. They can help you out with the paperwork and required parameters.
But, if you do decide to exercise your right for a DNR, PLEASE wear the bracelet. It will help the EMT's to determine what to do when you personally experience a cardiac or respiratory arrest.
Another avenue is to have a living will drawn up and signed by a lawyer / yourself / notary public. Then, carry a reasonable copy of it ON YOUR PERSON. Most Paramedics (I'm one of them) will honor these AFTER consulting with their medical control physician and getting their approval.
Sorry for all the information, but I've had to deal with too many dead people whose family members want us to do something, yet they're forgetting about the patient's original wish.
To confirm for BumpyRoad and others: A DNR is a recognized acronym for Do Not Resuscitate. (sorry if I'm sounding like I'm teaching) What it means is that if the person is pulseless and / or not breathing, we will honor their wishes by not attempting CPR, rescue breathing or medications to save them. These people have made a choice NOT to be resuscitated, and by law (if they have a bracelet on) we have to honor that wish.
If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?
Oh boy, what a can of worms you opened. If a state has DNR in place each state would have to have it's own order. In Washington state and having spent 27 years in the fire service a bracelet would not be sufficient to not initiate resuscitation. Would have to see the paperwork. A bracelet might give pause to the responders to question if such an order is in place but that is about all. Just think of what would happen if someone slipped a bracelet onto someone else. Then you get the whole thing of a challenge to the validity of the order. ie questioned by a relative on scene or the bystander screaming just don't stand there do something! What I am saying is after 27 years in the fire service, this is a legal issue and responders should not be put in that position. In the ideal situation where it is at the terminal patients bedside with hospice, physician, valid order, etc. it works. It the field when all he** is breaking loose let the physician sort out those legal details later. You can see I have been in this situation more then once and it is never pleasent regardless of the outcome. Best advice I can give is if you don't want to be resuscitated don't call 9-1-1. If you have a valid order you should have been instructed how to obtain a pronouncement and it is NOT by calling 9-1-1. If on scene responders almost always have a obligation to act, legally, morally, ethically. Obviously, obvious is aside if you know what I mean. Have all you ducks in a line and sort it out in the hospital with a physician.
Tom, Cheryl & Maverick (Black Lab.-Great Dane Rescue)
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Pesident San Juanderers
In KY, first responders are required to use any/all methods, systems, practices, and/or treatments available to them to save a life. They are not allowed to honor DNR orders. A person must have a legal copy of the paperwork available when they arrive at the hospital and themedical personnel can then base their decisions on it.
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