[Patient autonomy--legal status in Austria]

Area of Science:

• Medical Law
• Bioethics
• Austrian Legal Studies

Context:

• The legal enforceability of advance directives, specifically living wills, is a contentious issue in Austrian legal scholarship.
• Uncertainty exists regarding the extent to which physicians, legal guardians, and courts must adhere to a patient's prior treatment refusal.
• Existing legal discourse predominantly supports the continuity of treatment refusal, even after a patient loses decision-making capacity.

Purpose:

• To analyze the legal standing and binding nature of living wills in Austria.
• To critically evaluate the prevailing legal opinion on advance treatment refusal.
• To propose an alternative framework for decision-making for irreversibly incompetent patients.

Summary:

• The paper examines the controversy surrounding living wills in Austrian legal literature.
• It addresses the unresolved question of how binding advance treatment refusals are for healthcare providers, guardians, and courts.
• The author challenges the majority view that advance refusals remain binding post-incapacity, advocating instead for an "objective standard" for irreversibly incompetent patients.

Impact:

• This work contributes to the ongoing debate on patient autonomy and end-of-life decision-making in Austria.
• It may influence future legal interpretations and legislative reforms concerning advance directives.
• The proposed "objective standard" offers a potential new approach to managing complex cases of patient incapacity.