Mahanes Dea
Neurocritical and Neuro Intermediate Care, University of Virginia Health System, Box 801436, Charlottesville, VA 22908-1436, USA.
Crit Care Nurs Clin North Am. 2020 Mar;32(1):121-133. doi: 10.1016/j.cnc.2019.11.001. Epub 2019 Dec 12.
Stroke is a sudden, unexpected illness with an uncertain prognosis for functional recovery. Ethical issues in the care of patients with stroke include assessment of decision-making capacity when cognition or communication is impaired, prognostication, evaluation of quality of life, withdrawal or withholding of life-sustaining treatment, and how to optimize surrogate decision making. Skilled communication between clinicians and patients or their surrogates promotes shared decision making and may prevent ethical conflict. Nurses with an understanding of the ethics of stroke care play an important role in the care of patients with stroke and their families.
