Making medical decisions is not easy. Medical situations are complex and it is sometimes difficult to know the right thing to do. This is especially true when a patient is too ill to make decisions, when the appropriate treatment is unclear, or when patient and family values are not aligned.
Support for difficult medical decisions
There are often no ‘right’ answers in these circumstances. Everything is important to this decision-making process, including the patient’s and family’s personal and religious beliefs. These decisions require moral and medical consideration, input from a physician, input from the patient (if possible) and input from the patient's loved ones. Careful and thoughtful attention by everyone involved is important in determining the best direction in care.
The MaineHealth Maine Medical Center ethics consultation team is a group of doctors, nurses, social workers and chaplains. We have broad knowledge of health care, spiritual and ethical decision-making, and experience in helping families reach medical decisions in these tough circumstances. We are here to help.
Contact Us
Anyone who has a concern about the care of the patient may request an Ethics Consultation. Please call 207-662-3589 or email clinicalethics@mainehealth.org.
More about our services
Ethics consultations offer an opportunity to discuss difficult decisions surrounding your own or your loved one’s treatment. A member of the ethics team will talk with you and the health care team to gather the information necessary to understand the ethical concerns you are wrestling with. The Ethics Consultant may also organize a family meeting with your or your loved one’s health care team to discuss your questions and concerns and to facilitate dialogue.
Group-discussion styled meetings are often strongly encouraged in these instances, however you do not have to attend such a meeting if do not wish to. In this instance, an ethics team member will meet with the care-team and the patient or family separately.
While we are here to help you and the health care team understand each other’s concerns and identify options and possible solutions, the final responsibility for decisions about your loved one’s care belongs to you and the health care team. Our goal is to help you and/or your family and the health care team develop the best care plan for the patient.
Q: Who gets to make decisions for my loved one?
A: We can help identify who the patient’s appropriate representative is if a patient is unable to communicate.
Q: What if I don’t know what the right decision is?
A: We can help work through complex decisions in which there conflicting values and viewpoints.
Q: I don’t agree with the care-team about the appropriate treatment option. What do I do?
A: We can help mediate when you disagree with the health care team about the best treatment options for yourself or your loved one.
Q: I don’t agree with my loved one about the appropriate treatment option. What do I do?
A: When you and your loved one disagree about continuing treatment this can be a very difficult situation. However we can help facilitate the necessary dialogue among members of the care team, you and your loved one, with the hopes of reaching consensus.
Q: How do I decide if my child is prepared to learn about their health condition?
A: We can help you navigate the difficult questions and concerns that arise when you have child with a serious medical condition and you disagree with the physician or other family members about how much the child should be told. We will include your child’s pediatrician, and care providers from psychiatry and palliative care if necessary.
Q: What do I do if a treatment plan conflicts with my cultural or spiritual beliefs?
A: When medically appropriate, we can help you, your physicians and an appropriate religious leader if you choose, as you work to find a treatment plan that is suitable to your cultural or spiritual beliefs.
Q: Is the ethics consultation process documented?
A: A written account of the consultation becomes a part of the patient’s medical record.