Withdrawal of nutritional support in the terminally ill

The technological advances of recent years have placed an increasingly troublesome burden on healthcare practitioners. When the focus of patient care becomes supportive in nature and not curative, decisions to withhold or withdraw medical treatment become important. The purpose of this article is to allow the reader to explore their own personal reasoning for their continued use of or withdrawal of nutritional support. Legal/ethical principles and approaches to withdraw treatment will be discussed and help guide providers in care options.