Read Bio
Since 1976, Steve Levin has been dedicated to helping people injured by others’ negligence. He is one of the first attorneys in the U.S. to prosecute nursing homes for abuse and negligence. He’s also helped write new legislation that governs the operation of nursing homes, including the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act. Moreover, Levin & Perconti has obtained the top three jury verdicts in nursing home negligence cases in Illinois.
Read Bio
Since 1976, Steve Levin has been dedicated to helping people injured by others’ negligence. He is one of the first attorneys in the U.S. to prosecute nursing homes for abuse and negligence. He’s also helped write new legislation that governs the operation of nursing homes, including the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act. Moreover, Levin & Perconti has obtained the top three jury verdicts in nursing home negligence cases in Illinois.
Documents like advance directives and do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders are intended to make certain that a patient’s wishes for their treatment are followed, including when they can no longer advocate for themselves.
However, neglectful staff at nursing homes can misinterpret or fail to follow these directives, resulting in unwanted treatment or improperly withheld care. To make sure your loved one’s wishes are respected, it’s important that those caring for them fully understand those wishes and how to apply them.
What Are Advance Directives?
Advance directives are legal documents outlining one’s healthcare and treatment preferences in the event they become incapacitated. These include medical power of attorney, a directive that gives another trusted person the legal authority to make decisions about their care.
Living wills are the most common form of advance directive. A living will details what types of care the patient would consent to when they are no longer mentally competent, including treatments they specifically refuse. A patient can ask not to be resuscitated in a living will, but the directive will not be active until a doctor has declared them incompetent.
What Are DNR Orders?
A DNR order instructs caregivers not to perform CPR on a patient if their heart stops or they are not breathing. In contrast with advance directives, DNR orders are issued by a doctor with a patient’s informed consent. Individuals refuse CPR to prevent situations where they are kept alive with a poor or minimal quality of life after a serious accident or health issue.
DNR orders only concern the use of CPR and do not amount to a refusal of all medical treatment. A nursing home resident with a DNR order should receive the same level of attentive care and support in their everyday life as any other resident.
How Can Nursing Homes Mishandle an Advance Directive or DNR Order?
Physicians and nursing home staff are not immune to some common misconceptions about advance directives and DNR orders. Whether due to confusion, ignorance, or incompetence, healthcare professionals can sometimes misinterpret or fail to follow these documents, thereby disrespecting nursing home residents’ wishes.
Examples of situations where advance directives or DNR orders can be mishandled include:
- A DNR order or living will might not be properly communicated to healthcare providers in an emergency situation, subjecting the patient to unwanted treatment.
- Providers may resuscitate a resident without checking for a DNR or living will, or in defiance of them.
- Staff may fail to perform lifesaving treatment on a resident, mistakenly believing they had a DNR order when they did not.
- Consciously or unconsciously, staff may ignore or provide inadequate care to residents with DNR orders.
- Doctors or families may discontinue lifesaving treatment for a patient under a DNR order or living will that did not oppose that type of treatment.
- When a resident is transferred from one care setting to another, staff may fail to send the resident’s advance directive or DNR order documents to the new facility.
How Should Nursing Homes Handle Advance Directives and DNR Orders?
Federal and state regulations make nursing homes legally responsible for documenting and observing residents’ advance directives and DNR orders. To proactively handle these documents and make sure residents’ wishes are followed, nursing homes should:
- Determine if a resident has a living will or DNR order during admission, then communicate their preferences to caregivers.
- Ensure information on residents’ end-of-life care wishes is readily available to avoid confusion in emergency situations.
- Quickly implement changes made to a resident’s documents and update their file with the new information.
- Keep effective systems in place for communicating residents’ directives and DNR orders to physicians and other healthcare facilities during transfers.
What Can You Do to Preserve Your Loved One’s Wishes?
If you’re concerned that your loved one’s nursing home isn’t properly observing their advance directives or DNR order, being proactive can help prevent a situation where your family member’s end-of-life-care wishes are disrespected.
Speak to nursing home officials to verify that your loved one’s directions are on file and understand how staff are being instructed to follow them. While visiting the home, stay vigilant for any signs of neglect or abuse, ensuring they’re still receiving proper care despite their DNR order or living will.
If you’re concerned about how staff are treating your loved one or handling their directives, you can report your suspicions to the nursing home’s management. You can also reach out to the Illinois Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program for support and advice, or file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) if you suspect care violations.
Can You Sue a Nursing Home for Not Following Your Loved One’s Wishes?
When a nursing home’s negligence leads to your loved one’s living will being disrespected or them receiving CPR while under a DNR order, you may have a legal claim for any injuries they suffered. To build a successful case, you must establish how nursing home staff mishandled your loved one’s wishes, why their actions violated the facility’s duty of care to its residents, and how your loved one was harmed as a result.
If you believe a nursing home violated your loved one’s advance directive or DNR order, an experienced nursing home abuse lawyer at Levin & Perconti can help you investigate the situation and get the justice you deserve.
Advance Directive and DNR Order FAQs
Can a Family Member Override a Resident's DNR Order?
A family member cannot override a DNR order simply because they disagree with the patient’s wishes. If the patient cannot make health care decisions, an authorized health care agent, guardian or surrogate may be able to request a change, subject to their legal authority and the patient’s instructions and known wishes. In Illinois, a surrogate seeking to revoke a patient-signed POLST must first consult a qualified practitioner, review any available advance directive and make a good-faith effort to follow the patient’s known wishes.
When Is an Advance Directive Invalid or No Longer Applicable?
An advance directive may be invalid if it was entered into without legally required consent or did not meet the applicable signing, witnessing or decision-making capacity requirements. A valid directive can also be revoked or replaced, or may not apply to a particular medical situation. An attorney can explain these different scenarios.
Let Levin & Perconti Help Protect Your Loved One’s Wishes
The experienced nursing home abuse lawyers at Levin & Perconti are committed to advocating for the rights of residents. If you’re concerned that your loved one’s advance directive or DNR order is being mishandled, our team is ready to fight to get the justice your family deserves. Contact us online or call (312) 332-2872 today to schedule a free consultation.
