CSDM

I want to create a new job title. It would be Common Sense Decision Maker. Every family and workplace would have one. The job duty would be to hear all of the facts of any given situation, weigh the pros and cons and come up with a solid common sense decision. The more I spend time in the hospital visiting my father, the more I see a need for a CSDM. The hospital is wonderful and have the patients care as a priority, but they are looking through different eyes than a CSDM would. I will give you two scenarios. First, the doctors needed to locate where my father's infection was coming from. There were two places that were suspect. One was the arm and the other the heart. They did an isotope test and the arm was ruled out. They then wanted to do an endoscopic test under anesthesia to confirm that it was the heart. Here is where the CSDM comes in (me). I asked what the treatment would be if it was the heart and they said antibiotics. I asked what the treatment would be if it was not confirmed that it was the heart. They said antibiotics. Common sense would dictate that placing a 95 year old under anesthesia to have the same treatment either way, is not necessary. I refused the test and he is getting antibiotics. The next scenario is my father's roommate. He is 93 and came in to the hospital for a fall. After many tests, the doctors are saying he needs a heart valve repair. He has diabetes and is weak. He is now becoming agitated. The doctors are telling the family to take him home for three days to calm him down and bring him back for the surgery. A CSDM would look at the situation and say that a 93 year old diabetic should be left alone and go home with constant care to live out the time he has peacefully. The strain of open heart surgery will be a long hard road to recover from and might shorten his life. What is the benefit of such a radical operation for a man who at best has a few years to live? It is hard to make common sense decisions when emotions are high, so an unbiased person might just be the way to go.