Ethics Committee
Medical technology has grown remarkably within recent years, bringing new treatment options, many of them life-sustaining, for physicians, patients, and families. The downside is that these technological advances raise more difficult ethical questions about the use of these therapies, especially at the end of life.
Most of these new treatments have both benefits and burdens for patients. If the burdens outweigh the benefits, then perhaps the treatment should not be used. Doctors can clarify these problems for their patients. The final decision as to what treatments will be provided is highly personal and should be made by the patient. If a patient loses the capacity to make his or her own medical decisions then another person, usually a family member, will make these decisions. This person who makes decisions for the patient is called a surrogate.
The Ethics Committee of the Adirondack Medical Center (AMC) has twenty-one members: 7 physicians, 7 other people from the Hospital family, including the President of the Hospital, and 7 members drawn from the community including an ethicist with a doctorate degree in philosophy, an attorney, and a representative from the religious community.
This Ethics Committee provides a Consultation Service for patients, doctors, and family members. If treatment decisions are particularly difficult or disagreements arise among family members, patients, or doctors, the Ethics Committee can be helpful. The Ethics Committee members making the consultation can meet with the doctors, the patient, and family members to define the ethics problems, and to make suggestions for a solution that could lead to resolution of the ethical problem and the provision of sound medical care.
The Ethics Committee does not make medical treatment decisions - that is between doctors and their patients. Please note that the suggestions presented by the Ethics Committee Consultation Service are neither institutionally nor legally binding. All consultation requests are completely confidential and are free of charge.
To request the assistance of an Ethics Consultation, please ask your nurse or doctor if you are a patient in the hospital. If you are outside the hospital, contact Ms. Valerie Oliver, the Ethics Committee Secretary, at (518) 897-2347.
At AMC, we believe that everyone should have two Advance Directives. The first is to name a Health Care Proxy. A Health Care Proxy is a person chosen by the patient who will make surrogate decisions for the patient in the future if the patient has lost the capacity to make his or her own health care decisions. The second is a Living Will that reflects the patient's beliefs and priorities and provides guidelines for the kind of medical care that a patient would like to have in the future. Your nurses or doctors can further explain Advance Directives to you; and they can help you obtain forms you may want to fill out and sign. You should have a thorough conversation with your doctor about the benefits and burdens of each medical treatment, and you should have conversations with your Health Care Proxy whenever you change your mind about the kind of medical care you want to have.
The New York State Department of Health has a web site where you can get more information about Advance Directives: http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/hospital/healthcareproxy/i
AMC is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation
of Healthcare Organizations and the American Osteopathic Association.
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Adirondack Medical Center's Bariatric Program and Dr. Michael Hill have been designated as a Center of Excellence by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery.
