Coronavirus Update: Doctors Urge People To Update Their Wills, Consider Advance Directives Before Pandemic Worsens
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – No visitors are allowed at Mount Sinai Queens, but you don't need to go inside to understand COVID-19 has city hospitals in crisis mode.
Workers prepared a coronavirus patient intake area Thursday. At the ambulance entrance, a trailer that can be used as a morgue was delivered Wednesday.
Knowing that doctors and nurses may be forced to ration care, Marina Anderson was glad she filled out a living will. She told her health care proxy if she develops COVID-19, she would accept drug treatment but no ventilator.
"With this crisis the way it is now, I would rather have a younger person," she told CBS2's Tony Aiello. "There are people who are in a lot more need than I am."
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So-called "advance directive" resources are widely available online, including a Medical Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment form from New York State.
Dr. Ezriel Kornel - himself recovering from COVID-19 - says doctors appreciate patients who take the time to outline their wishes.
"There are people who are already very ill, who have terminal illnesses, who know that their time is limited anyway," he explained. "The idea of making sure that people do have their directives filled out now is very valuable."
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In a podcast, the Mount Sinai Health System's head of emergency medicine, Dr. Brendan Carr, said as the crisis builds, prioritizing care becomes a painful necessity.
"The literature from Italy tells clear stories of sort of making artificial thresholds," he said.
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"You're talking about 'treat this person, not that person' kind of decisions?" the interviewer asked.
"Yeah I am, I am talking about that. We all hope we never get there, but it would be irresponsible not to think about it," said Carr.
Carr said the only way out of the crisis is through it. Spare a thought for those on the front lines.
