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06/30/2009

New Bill Creates Standardized Form for Patient End-of-Life Wishes

New Bill Creates Standardized Form for Patient End-of-Life Wishes
Legislation was introduced in Ohio last week that would create a Medical Order for Life Sustaining Treatment (MOLST) form that would help provide standardized documentation of patients' wishes for treatment toward the end of their lives. The form incorporates do-not-resuscitate wishes with other treatment preferences such as comfort care, limited additional interventions or the use of antibiotics or artificially administered nutrition.  

The MOLST form would be standardized, brightly-colored and completed by a patient's physician, physician assistant or nurse practitioner after discussion with the patient or his or her representative. It also would be portable throughout the health care delivery system. Similar legislation has been adopted in other states (see http://www.polst.org/ for more
information).

House Bill 241 was introduced by Rep. Nancy Garland (D-Gahanna). http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=128_HB_241

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