Wanted and Unwanted Care: The Double-Edged Sword of Partial Do-Not-Resuscitate Orders.

Background: The interpretation of do-not-resuscitate orders (DNRs) may vary in nonarrest situations. To reduce ambiguity, many hospitals allow patients to elect partial DNRs.

Objective: To investigate the effect of partial DNRs on physicians' willingness to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and nonarrest procedures.

Design: Cross-sectional study using scenario-based questionnaires between October 2015 and March 2016. A partial DNR was identified as a DNR with Adult Emergency Protocols (AEP) order. Each survey presented 3 patient scenarios followed by 10 interventions.

Setting/subjects: Preclerkship and clerkship medical students, and internal medicine residents at a single medical school, and hospitalists at a tertiary-care academic medical center.

Results: Responses from 275 of 366 (75.1%) eligible subjects were collected. Compared to the case with a full DNR, the presence of a partial DNR was positively associated with subjects' willingness to provide both nonarrest procedures and CPR (p < 0.05). The number of training or practice years was positively associated with a decision not to perform CPR: case 1 (odds ratio [OR], 1.09; confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.16; p = 0.003); case 2 (OR, 1.07; CI, 1.01-1.14; p = 0.03); and case 3 (OR, 1.09; CI, 1.04-1.16; p < 0.001).

Conclusions: A partial DNR made our respondents more willing to provide nonarrest procedures, but also CPR. These findings suggest an ongoing need to develop better means of incorporating patients' goals of care into orders that more faithfully guide care for both nonarrest and arrest situations.