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Palliative Medicine
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When a demented patient refuses food - ethical arguments of nurses in Israel

MJ Hirschfeld

Unit forthe Study of Chronic Care throughout the Life Span, Department of Nursing, Tel Aviv University

L. Ziv

Unit forthe Study of Chronic Care throughout the Life Span, Department of Nursing, Tel Aviv University

There can be difficult ethical dilemmas to face for nurses confronting a patient with dementia. In Israel these dilemmas exist within a culture and religion where life is considered of the utmost value. It was apparent that nurses had difficulties choosing between feeding without consent, and the possibility of death due to lack of nutrition. Nurses working with demented patients tended to follow traditional religious ethics, even if this meant using force, and all but one nurse placed the sanctity of life above the autonomy of the patient. Other nurses, however, felt unable to abide by such rules, although it usually meant they had to work in a different clinical setting. Such changing attitudes could have profound effects on nursing care in Israel.

Key Words: force feeding • human rights • institutional ethics • nursing ethics • quality of life • religious beliefs

Palliative Medicine, Vol. 4, No. 1, 25-30 (1990)
DOI: 10.1177/026921639000400106
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