Description
The withdrawal of artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH) from incompetent adult patients is an area where medical practice comes into direct conflict with the criminal law. The legal issues have been decided by the courts for those patients in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) but not for incompetent non-PVS patients. In this article I will discuss the legal issues that arise from the withdrawal of ANH, the validity of living wills, and the effect of the Human Rights Act 1998 on end of life decisions.
