In a thought a provoking blog based upon research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, Paula Span discusses the difficulty in surrogate decision making when a loved one is nearing the end of their life. Though typically assumed to be a communication error, the disconnect between what doctors tell loved ones about the patients chances and what they hear may more likely be caused by an optimistic bias in favor of a good outcome. The caretakers do understand what they are being told, they simply tend to believe their loved one will beat the odds. Read more below:
