Finding into death of Reginald John Brooks

AI-generated summary

A 99-year-old man with cognitive decline sustained a hip fracture from a fall and subsequently underwent surgery with informed consent. He suffered cardiopulmonary arrest post-operatively and was resuscitated despite the son's claim he had previously expressed NFR wishes. No formal NFR order existed at the time of collapse. The coroner found the patient had capacity to consent to surgery, the resuscitation was legally appropriate given absence of formal NFR documentation, and communication with family about medical management should have been more proactive. The hospital implemented comprehensive policy improvements post-incident addressing Medical Power of Attorney documentation and NFR procedures. Key clinical lessons: proactively discuss resuscitation/NFR status with elderly post-operative patients and their families; formally document advance directives; ensure Medical Power of Attorney status is identified at admission; and consider family input even when patient has capacity.

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