The issue of what it means to be brain dead has been in the news recently and has lead many to wonder what standards must be met in order to declare someone dead. As it turns out, there is no set standard with protocols varying greatly from state to state and even from hospital to hospital. However, the American Academy of Neurology has, since 2010, issued a checklist which represents a definitive guide to determining the extent of brain damage to a patient and their chance for recovery. However, total adoption of the checklist has been slow although elements of the guidelines have been implemented in a growing number of hospitals. But there is still much work to be done as some locations remain disturbingly out of touch by not even requiring that the doctor test the patients ability to breath on their own which the Academy states is a bare minimum requirement that should be performed in every evaluation. But there is reason to be optimistic, the Academy highlighted in their report that adoption of the brain death standards is on the rise which gives much hope for the future.
See Dennis Thompson, Hospitals’ brain death policies vary dramatically, KCBD, December 28, 2015.
