| Statutory Citations | Delaware |
Documents
Free advance directive documents and instructions from Partnership for Caring.
| Court Cases |
Delaware |
| Case | In re Tavel, 661 A.2d 1061 (Del. 1995). |
| Court | Delaware Supreme Court |
| Year | 1995 |
| Patient (age) | Charlotte Tavel (88) |
| Nutrition + hydration | Gastrostomy tube |
| Mental capacity | Irreversibly brain damaged; virtually unresponsive; a form of Persistent Vegetative State (PVS) |
| Decision maker(s) | Mrs. Tavel-Lipnick (daughter) |
| Setting | Delaware nursing home |
| Patient's Wishes | Family, friends, caretakers, and Tavel's rabbi all agreed that she would want her feeding tube removed. |
| Court's Decision |
The court affirmed the lower court's ruling that a guardian can make a decision to forgo life-sustaining treatment using "substituted judgment" so long as clear and convincing evidence of a patient's wishes can be established. The court was satisfied by the evidence it heard and authorized the withdrawal of artificial nutrition and hydration. |
| Outcome | Charlotte Tavel died just before the court authorized withdrawal of her feeding tube. |
| Citation | Partnership for Caring, Inc. (2001), Fact Sheet, In re Tavel |
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