Hastings Center Report
Offering “Faux Codes”: An Ethical Option for the Patient Who Can’t Tell Their Family No
Abstract: Some patients do not want medically appropriate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) at the end of life but cannot withstand family pressures to request a “full code” status. This essay defends offering these patients a “faux code,” which would involve keeping the patient’s status “full code” in the chart, with an unwritten agreement between the patient and the medical team that an effort will be made to withhold CPR at the time of arrest. Objections to faux codes are addressed, and it is concluded that faux codes are an ethically permissible option for some patients at the end of life.
