Table 2 Exclusion criteria for critical care resource consideration

Severe trauma victim (otherwise precluding normal care)

Suffered from severe burns with either of these two criteria:

   40% burn of total body surface area

   Inhalation injury

Cardiac arrest (ongoing at time of evaluation)

Severe baseline cognitive impairment

   Defined as requiring regular ongoing assistance from others

Advanced significant and/or untreatable neurological disease with major functional impairment

Presence of metastatic and/or terminal cancer

Advance immunocompromised state, for example:

   End-stage renal disease

   AIDS

   Status post-organ transplant requiring ongoing immunosuppressive therapy

Evidence of end-stage organ failure:

   Heart: NYHA class 3 or 4 heart failure

   Lungs: COPD requiring chronic oxygen therapy, cystic fibrosis with baseline PaO₂ <55 mmHg, primary pulmonary hypertension with pulmonary arterial pressure >50 mmHg

   Liver: current liver failure or chronic liver disease with Child-Pugh score ≥7

   Kidney: renal failure requiring dialysis