title: Concepts and debates in end-of-life care.
abstract: Debates in India on end-of-life care assumed a new life after the petition in the Supreme Court in the case of Aruna Ramchandra Shanbaug, calling for withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy from a patient in a persistent vegetative state. The Court's landmark decision has led the way for discussing and developing guidelines on various situations in end-of- life care. This paper discusses some key concepts in end-of-life care - medical futility, palliative care, advance directives, surrogate decision making, physician assisted suicide and euthanasia - with reference to the guidelines of various medical associations and decisions in Indian courts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hospital Administration, Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, India. a.chak165@gmail.com
authors.forename: Abhijit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chakravarty
authors.forename: Pawan
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kapoor
mesh_terms: D016223:Advance Directives / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D028601:Euthanasia, Active / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D018447:Medical Futility / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D011640:Public Policy; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D028761:Withholding Treatment / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence