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Normally, the morphine injection systems have a hard limit preventing you from overdosing; if you press it before the timer has elapsed, it'll beep at you (and
by fixermark 10y ago
Normally, the morphine injection systems have a hard limit preventing you from overdosing; if you press it before the timer has elapsed, it'll beep at you (and record the press so doctors can get a sense of whether you want more painkiller than you're getting and how long the doses seem to be working for you), but it won't administer.
I never stopped to think about it before you shared this story, but in hindsight it's not surprising to me that feature can be overridden. I bet the manufacturer has even put in just enough safety interlocks to make it hard to do accidentally, but not enough to prevent it outright. You know, because sometimes doctors may need to tweak it on a per-patient basis...
- Retric 10y agoAnother factor is a 600lb patient is going to need a regular does that would kill a 120lb patent. So, from a manufactures perspective it's not obvious what a 'lethal' does is.
- MichaelGG 10y agoI feel badly for people that cannot obtain the medicines to do this without "establishment" help. Having seen relatives go through a long period of decay, it really is horrible. Not only suffering for the person, but the destruction of memories for the rest of the family. If it was someone very close to me, I'd personally acquire the medicines needed. It's not that hard to find a supplier of powerful opiates, even if you have to buy diamorphine on the street. Opiate overdose appears to be a very nice way to go.