Journal of advanced nursing
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This paper reports on the findings from an ethnographic study involving three wards in two hospitals in the Northwest of England and focuses on the controversial issue of Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders. The study aimed to explore the way in which terminal care was provided to older patients and examined the way in which DNR orders were a socially constructed part of the practices of both nurses and doctors. ⋯ The study raises issues about the quality of care received by frail older patients whom the nurses felt would not survive a futile medical procedure. The conclusion considers the need for hospitals to formulate and implement CPR policies, particularly in the prevailing climate in which patients are encouraged to become active participants in their own health care.