Question

You arrive on the scene of a 55-year-old male patient. The patient's wife called 911 because he is having chest pains. The patient is very angry with his wife for calling 911 because he states he only has heartburn and adamantly refuses any treatment or transport. After signing the patient refusal form, the patient collapses and goes into sudden cardiac arrest. The wife is crying uncontrollably and begging you to do something. What should you do?
A) Respect his legal right to not have any treatment, regardless of how much the wife begs you to help.
B) Explain to the wife that her husband signed a legal document refusing care, and if you intervened to help him now, you would be breaking the law.
C) Provide emergency care for the patient only if his wife signs a document stating they will not sue the EMS service.
D) Provide emergency care under implied consent.

Answer

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