Health Care & Personal Decision-Making Flashcards

Supported decision-making is best described as:

Answer: An arrangement where the person keeps decision-making rights and gets help from trusted supporters

Supported decision-making is a less restrictive alternative in which the individual makes their own choices with assistance.

Regarding physical or chemical restraints, a guardian should make sure they are:

Answer: Used only when needed for safety, as the least restrictive option, and properly ordered and documented

Restraints must never be used for discipline or convenience and require clinical justification and monitoring.

Under NGA Standards of Practice, how often should a guardian of the person visit the ward at a minimum?

Answer: At least monthly

The NGA Standards call for the guardian to visit the person at least monthly.

In Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Dept. of Health (1990), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a state may:

Answer: Require clear and convincing evidence of an incompetent patient's wishes before life-sustaining treatment is withdrawn

Cruzan upheld Missouri's clear and convincing evidence requirement for withdrawing nutrition and hydration.

To qualify for the Medicare hospice benefit, a physician generally must certify that the patient's life expectancy is:

Answer: Six months or less if the illness runs its normal course

Medicare hospice eligibility requires certification of a terminal illness with a prognosis of six months or less.

A researcher asks the guardian to enroll the ward in an experimental drug study. The guardian generally should:

Answer: Consider the ward's wishes and get court authorization where required before consenting

Experimental treatment and research participation are extraordinary decisions that often require court approval and must reflect the ward's wishes and welfare.

A ward's sibling needs a kidney, and the ward is a match. Consent to the ward serving as a living donor typically requires:

Answer: Prior court approval

Living organ donation offers the ward no medical benefit, so courts typically must approve it.