This 5 page paper discusses the practice of tube feeding the elderly, and argues that the invasive procedure has a significant negative impact on the quality of life of the patient thus fed. The writer argues that truly understanding the nature of tube feeding should force a consideration of the ethics of the practice, and the fact that it can be seen as an heroic, and sometimes overstepping, measure to keep the terminally ill alive. The writer suggests that a true understanding of tube feeding might force a reconsideration of the use of this intervention when it so dramatically diminishes a patient's quality of life. There are 8 sources listed in the bibliography.
Name of Research Paper File: LM1_TLCTubeF.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
the nature of the act, as well as acknowledging the ethical implications of such an heroic - if not overstepping - measure, causes one to consider if such nursing intervention
is warranted when compared to the patients diminished quality of life, inasmuch as a recent study indicates how it "failed to achieve any clinically meaningful improvement on common measures of
functional status, nutritional status or subjective health status" (Anonymous, 2000, p. 19). Since the very first move toward humanizing the medical industry, quality
of life has been a standard for measuring a patients outcome. Indeed, while there may be medical procedures like tube feeding still to be applied to a particular disease
or condition, the individuals quality of life must first be considered before deciding to implement further intervention. What is quality of life and why is it so important to
patient care in the context of tube feeding the elderly? "Quality of life (QOL) is a complex, abstract, and multidimensional concept that is difficult to define and measure.
Consequently, various conceptual and operational definitions have been used in quality of life studies" (Anonymous, 2001). In the context of patient care, quality of life represents the extent to
which an individual can continue living his or her normal existence without the overwhelming presence of invasive medical procedures or treatments like tube feeding. For example, a terminally ill patient
whose prognosis is six months to a year may be worse off with nurses trying to extend his or her life by way of tube feeding if that action only
delays the inevitable. In assessing this individuals quality of life, it is important to examine what is significant in his or her life in order to understand certain requirements