Right to decide? Not always.

Few people know that New York nursing homes can have policies allowing them to disregard, on moral or religious grounds, end-of-life treatment decisions made by residents or their health care agents.

Often families realize this only when a relative in one of these homes is dying.  A transfer to a new facility is possible but it is traumatic for patient and relatives and is often difficult because few facilities will accept transfers in this circumstance.

FRIA has begun a new project supported by the Fan Fox and Leslie Samuels Foundation through a special initiative of Choice in Dying. The project will raise awareness about this issue. 

We plan to identify which New York City nursing homes have this kind of "conscience " policy so that consumers can make better choices when placing relatives.

By determining how facilities inform prospective residents and families about the policies, we hope to find ways to improve communication about this issue for both consumers and facilities.

Finally we hope to explore issues that make transfers difficult, and look for ways to make the process easier for everyone if a transfer is needed.