How is time to death calculated in terminally I’ll patients?
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It isn’t. You go by the current condition (respiration pattern, urinary output, blood pressure, color of extremities, etc.) and by experience you guess. That is the best you can do. I took care of a patient that seemed stable and was asked how long and my guess was days to a week. She died that hour. Another patient that was in a Cheyenne stokes respiratory pattern that was nearly agonal with almost no output went over a week until demise….the family even asked if I would routinely administer sedatives and narcotics to hasten death….of which I refused. I will gladly try to control pain and discomfort but by my oath to my profession I will not try to hasten death artificially.
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