My husband and I were visiting my 92 yr. old Mom in Michigan last August when she passed out. She had taken her blood pressure pills about an hour before it happened. She complained of feeling dizzy so I told her to stay sitting on the couch. In a matter of minutes, I looked over at her and she was sitting there with her eyes wide open but a completely bank stare. She was just not there. We pushed her emergency button and the EMT's arrived within 10 minutes. They did not get any response from her and said she was in cardiac arrest, her pulse was 40. They asked us if she had a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate Order) and I said I wasn't sure. I thought she did but I had never signed or seen any paperwork from her or her doctors. So they quickly started CPR on her and brought her back. She lives on her own, cares for herself and is mentally fine except for some forgetfulness and short term memory issues, so she often repeats things she has already talked about. Her health care is through senior service center provided through the state. They pick her up for doctors’ appointments, and she visits their facility 2-3 times a week. They have been a God send for my sister and I because we both live out of state. We were told by the nurse at the hospital that if Mom has a DNR order the paramedics would not have given her CPR. Nor would they if the same thing happened at the hospital. So another words my Mom would not be with us right now because they would have done nothing for her. Mom is doing excellent now and feeling great.
Here is my question. Why would you or anyone sign papers for DNR when there is a chance they can save you? Mom has a Living Will which already states her wishes about not being kept alive by machines if she is brain dead or in a vegetative state. So to me the DNR makes no sense. Why would anyone agree to not being resuscitated? And why does the senior service center doctor she sees insist that she needs the DNR order? They want us to sign papers for her so next time this will be on her record.
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They may fight tubes after being resuscitated and have to be restrained in the bed. This can cause them much mental anguish as well as increased physical disability. So, for many people, prolonging a terminal patient's pain is not something they want to do.
I'll send you PM with a link of something that helped me.
I now know that if I have dementia or some other terminal illness in which recovery is not likely, I do not want CPR. It's a personal decision, but, it doesn't work out very well with some people and many experts don't recommend it for terminally ill patients.