Medical Futility in Oncology Settings: Research Proposal

, 2007).

In another relative study, Soares and colleagues (2008) focus on the impact that a prolonged length of stay (LOS) in the ICU setting can have on the cancer patients. This particular approach to analyzing medical futility is rare and hence is important as the scarcity of research leads to gaps in our knowledge on this particular aspect. Hence, this study mainly assessed the personality traits and influences of cancer patients on their treatments of fatal medical intricacies that took place during their in the ICU for ? 21 days (Soares et al., 2008). They define the ICU LOS as simply that lasted less than or equal to 21 days in total.

The results of the study were as follows:

There were a total of 1,090 patients in the ICU, 15% (163) of which experienced prolonged ICU LOS

The total ICU bed-days for these patients were a total of 48% only i.e. 5,828 out 12,224

The hospital mortality rate was at 50%

The 6-month mortality rate was at 60%

The hospital mortality rate was at 51%for patients experiencing LOS longer then 21 days

The 6-month mortality rate was at 61%for patients experiencing LOS longer then 21 days

Most frequent intricacies to occur in the ICU were from infections that accounted for a total of 90%, while complication in the mechanical ventilation system accounted for (99%) (Soares et al., 2008).

After analyzing the results, the researchers concluded that there were only a total of 15% of patients who faced severe cases of cancer and prolonged ICU LOS. They also concluded that the overall survival ratios were acceptable, both in the short and the long run and that the overall results displayed by the study were not as fatal as they were expected to be. They further concluded that the overall stay in the ICU was not a string enough determinant to make clear and empirical clinical analysis and hence should not be used in further studies to analyze the nature, success/failure and longevity of medical treatments (Soares et al., 2008).

Conclusion

The origins of the tremendous acceleration of the patients who need efficient renal care is not a simple subject and cannot be handled appropriately without taking into account the multiple dimensions of decision making, personal experiences, funding, ethnicity, race, gender, prior success, etc. Analyzing renal care without acknowledge these factors and others would be like stating that the use of efficient cardiac strategies leads to better management of the coronary heart disease which has an influence on the patients and health care system that isn't always positive. It is, however, important to design and implement more efficient renal care strategies and cancer support structures so that the relative diseases like kidney failure and ESRD can be avoided.

It is important for the proper and efficient diagnoses of renal care that all the relative aspects and treatments given for ESRD, dialysis, transplantation and conservative management, etc. are viable alternatives available for the patients to choose from. The misconception that RRT can only occur at the old age must be changed and individual attention (concerning the state of their disease, their experience, their financial standing, ethnicity, etc.) must be given to patients with renal failure in order to correctly tackle medical futility ratios in the domain. There also needs to be an empirical and planned approach to manage the understanding of this phenomenon (Munshi et al., 2001).

References

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Munshi et al. (2001). Out come of renal replacement therapy in the very elderly. Nephrology dialysis Transplantation. 16, 128 -- 133.

Munshi, SK., Bell, SL. And Warwick, G. (2002). Ageism in renal replacement therapy. Nursing Older People 15, (9).

Murtagh, F., Murphy, E., Shepherd, K. (2006). End of life care in end-stage renal disease: renal and palliative care. British Journal of Nursing 15, (1), 8-11.

Nobel, H. And Kelly, D., Rawlings -- Anderson, K., et al. (2007). A concept analysis of renal supportive care: the changing world of nephrology. Journal of Advanced Nursing 59, (6), 644 -- 653.

Soares, M., Salluh, J.I.F., Torres, V.B.L., Leal, J.V.R. And Spector, N. (2008). Short- and Long-term Outcomes of Critically Ill Patients With Cancer and Prolonged ICU Length of Stay. CHEST,…