Dilemma: Right vs. Right
Life or Death Emergency: Report or Respond?
One Saturday afternoon Don was returning home after a visit to his daughter's farm some 30 miles away. Midway down the interstate, he saw another car come to a rolling stop near the edge of the highway. There was an elderly driver at the wheel who was slumped forward and seemingly unconscious. The driver's wife jumped out of the vehicle and waved her arms at him, seeking help.
Don's first thought, but only for a brief moment, was: Should I stop? He could, after all, simply call in the emergency over his car phone and continue his trip home, knowing help would arrive before long. But as an EMT, Don knows he is skilled in aiding and assessing a situation such as this one, so he put in a call to 911 and pulled over to the breakdown lane.
Don first pushed the unconscious driver's car off the highway, out of harm's way, then he turned his attention to the ill man. Just as he was beginning to apply cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the man's wife confronted Don, saying, "No! Please don't try to revive him. He's had a serious heart condition for some time now, and he has a living will stating that he doesn't want to be resuscitated." The woman was adamant, but did not have the living will with her. Don rechecked the man's pulse: It was weak, but the man was alive.
What should Don do?
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