Patients’ life-treatment wishes ‘overlooked’ amid paperwork delays, lawyers caution

According to research by JMW Solicitors, patients who have requested not to be given life-saving treatment if their condition deteriorates are being kept alive against their will, due to delays in processing paperwork registering their wishes.

The news comes as there has been a surging demand for Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) arrangements, allowing appointed loved-ones to make important treatment decision on behalf of patients which can no longer decide for themselves.

The study analysed government figures which suggested the number of people making LPA decisions had almost doubled since 2014. The increase is reported to be partly due to an increase in dementia diagnoses as Britain’s population continues to age.

The research calculated that the number of people in England and Wales making LPA decisions had increased by 89 per cent between 2013 and 2015 to 510,925. However, it outlines that in some cases, delays in processing the documents had resulted in patients receiving treatment against their wishes.

Elaine Roche, of JMW, said: “The last few years have seen a dramatic increase in men and women of all ages making LPAs, due in part to concerns about the impact of dementia and the desire to determine what should happen to them if they should lose the mental capacity to take decisions about their own affairs

“It’s understandable that a doctor or nurse in a hospital’s A&E department may care for someone in need first and ask questions later but treating someone despite an LPA being in place is now a professional offence.

“As LPAs become even more popular, there is every likelihood that the backlog may get worse and the problems could become even more acute without resources to speed up the registration process.”