Limitation of pediatric life support: ethical arguments

Abstract

Objectives: To know the ethical arguments of pediatric intensive care physicians in order to justify decisions in the field of limitation of life support, in a pediatric intensive care unit of the city of Rio de Janeiro, analyzing them critically. Methods: This is a descriptive case study. 17 semi-structured interviews were performed with intensive care physicians that worked in a high complexity pediatric intensive care unit in Rio de Janeiro. Results: The physicians adopted a paternalistic tendency in the decision making of limitation of life support, and the interviewed people were not aware of its application and the steps of the process. Conclusions: Educational activities related to dying process should be encouraged as the dialogue and recognition of others as a moral agent. Bioethics can be useful in this critical development helping the resolution of ethical conflicts not only in the limitation of life support process but also in other areas of medicine.