Quote Originally Posted by iris lilies View Post
oh no no no! My brother, mother, and I were completely in agreement with pulling the plug. Once we chased down the heart doc, the lung doc, and the GP who had to assent and give their opinion, all were in agreement.

I just wonder how long my father would have lain in ICU racking up those costs, and on a ventilator, if we had not been proactive. I'm sure it would have been just a matter of days, but each day costs how much?
Well they do all have to agree, and sometimes that may take a day or two. You really don't want them to jump the gun. There is something between pulling the plug too fast and waiting too long. And sometimes, they know it's just a matter of a day, or hours, and would really just rather let nature take it's course. Turning off (unplugging) is a very serious, and difficult thing to do for hospitals and doctors. We can say, OK unplug him, but it is very much more complicated than that.

On the other hand, there are people like my brother in law, who likes to micro manage EVERYTHING, including his own mothers death. When she slipped into a coma following a stroke, we were all there within a few hours. She wasn't on a vent or anything, just IV drip and usual heart monitor, etc..., in a regular hospital room (no ICU) It was obvious she wouldn't last long, and certainly no one was suggesting heroics, but my brother in law kept talking about pulling out her IV and withholding medicine, etc... This within about 5 hours of her going into a coma. What a tool! It's like geez! she wasn't going fast enough for him! As it was, she passed the next day.