In April 2023 the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia published a special issue developed around a Clinical Practice Guideline update for death determination, titled “A brain-based definition of death and criteria for its determination after arrest of circulation or neurologic function in Canada: a 2023 clinical practice guideline”. A 60-person multidisciplinary panel consisting of critical care nurses and physicians (adult and pediatric), radiologists, neurologists, neurointensivists, anesthesiologists, ethicists, lawyers, patient families and public partners, as well as methodologists from across Canada used a rigorous process to develop a unified brain-based definition of death and update the criteria for its determination after devastating brain injury or circulatory arrest. This guideline replaces previously published Canadian recommendations for defining and determining death, and includes recommendations for medical, legal and ethical practices as well as guidance for how to compassionately communicate with families during the tragic loss of a loved one.
To learn about the new definition and its implications for your practice, please join us for a webinar where Dr Sam Shemie, the leader of the multidisciplinary panel, discusses the guideline update.
