Editing Do not resuscitate (section)

==== Legal precedent for the right to refuse medical interventions ====
There are three notable cases which set the baseline for patient's rights to refuse medical intervention:

# [[Karen Ann Quinlan|Karen Quinlan]], a 21-year-old woman, was in a persistent vegetative state after experiencing two 15-minute apneic periods secondary to drug use. After a year without improvement her father requested that life support be withdrawn. The hospital refused and this culminated in a court case. The trial court sided with the hospital, however the New Jersey Supreme Court reversed the decision. This was the first of multiple state level decisions pre-empting the Cruzan case which established the non-religious (there were other prior rulings regarding Jehovah's Witnesses) right to refuse care and extended that right to incapacitated patients via their guardians. It also established that court cases are not needed to terminate care when there is concordance between the stakeholders in the decision (Guardian, Clinician, Ethics Committees). It also shifted the focus from the right to seek care to the right to die. Mrs. Quinlan survived for 9 years after mechanical ventilation was discontinued.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Tiegreen|first=Tim|title=Case Study - Matter of Quinlan|url=https://practicalbioethics.org/case-studies-study-guide-matter-of-quinlan.html|access-date=2021-09-12|website=Center for Practical Bioethics|language=en-gb}}</ref>
# [[Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health|Nancy Cruzan]] was a 31-year-old woman who was in a persistent vegetative state after a motor vehicle accident that caused brain damage. Her family asked that life support be stopped after 4 years without any improvement. The hospital refused without a court order, and the family sued to obtain one. The trial court sided with the family concluding that the state could not override her wishes. This ruling was appealed to and reversed by the Missouri Supreme Court. This case was ultimately heard by the United States Supreme Court, which affirmed the right of competent individuals to refuse medical treatment and established standards for refusal of treatment for an incompetent person.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Case Study - The Case of Nancy Cruzan|url=https://www.practicalbioethics.org/shared-decision-making-and-advance-care-planning/end-of-life-ethics/the-case-of-nancy-cruzan/|access-date=2022-12-05|website=Center for Practical Bioethics|date=3 November 2021 |language=en-gb}}</ref>
# [[Theresa Schiavo|Theresa "Terri" Schiavo]] was a 27-year-old woman who experienced cardiac arrest and was resuscitated successfully. She was in a persistent vegetative state thereafter. After 8 years in this state without recovery, her husband decided to have her feeding tube removed. Schiavo's parents disagreed and the case that ensued ultimately was heard by the Florida Supreme Court which ruled that remaining alive would not respect her wishes. The United States Supreme Court affirmed that decision and refused to hear the case. This case affirmed the right of a patient to refuse care that is not in their best interests even when incapacitated.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Hook|first1=C. Christopher|last2=Mueller|first2=Paul S.|date=2005-11-01|title=The Terri Schiavo Saga: The Making of a Tragedy and Lessons Learned|url=https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(11)61439-0/abstract|journal=Mayo Clinic Proceedings|language=English|volume=80|issue=11|pages=1449–1460|doi=10.4065/80.11.1449|pmid=16295025|issn=0025-6196|doi-access=free}}</ref>