Palliative Care

(asked on 24th May 2016) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department provides to district nurses on discussing do not resuscitate orders with patients and next of kin.


Answered by
 Portrait
Ben Gummer
This question was answered on 27th May 2016

The Department has not itself issued guidance on this subject, but has commended to National Health Service trusts and NHS foundation trusts guidance for healthcare professionals prepared jointly by the British Medical Association, the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the Royal College of Nursing entitled Decisions relating to cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The latest version of the guidance was published in October 2014 and took account of the Court of Appeal’s judgment, handed down in June 2014, in the case of R (on the application of Tracey) v (1) Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (2) Secretary of State for Health. The Court of Appeal concluded that there was duty to consult a patient, or those close to the patient, about a Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation decision unless that consultation is likely to cause physical or psychological harm to the patient.

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