"Condition A's"

[vil]

Dear teachers,

Would you be kind enough to tell me whether the term in bold in the following excerpt from a NYT’s article is in common use in your area?

These are the “good deaths,” the ones where the family is present and knows what to expect. Like all deaths, these deaths are difficult, but they are controlled, unsurprising, anticipated.
And then there are the other deaths: quick and rare, where life leaves a body in minutes. In my hospital these deaths are “Condition A’s.” The "A” stands for arrest, as in cardiac arrest, as in this patient’s heart has all of a sudden stopped beating and we need to try to restart it.

Thank you for your efforts.

Regards,

V.

[Barb_D]

Vil, nothing was in bold, so I'm not sure which part you don't understand.

[bhaisahab]

Vil, nothing was in bold, so I'm not sure which part you don't understand.

I think he means "Condition A's", the title which is in bold. I have never heard it used before.

[vil]

Hi Barb_D,

Thank you for your gentle reminder. I beg yours pardon for this unintentional embarrassment. Bhaisahab was on the right way. The term in question is “Condition A’s”. Probably it is a fresh Americanism.

Regards,

V.

[Barb_D]

Well, it goes on to say that "Condition A" is the term used in that hospital to mean cardiac arrest.

Otherwise, I would have no idea what it means either. It's certainly not in the common vernacular.

[Raymott]

Dear teachers,

Would you be kind enough to tell me whether the term in bold in the following excerpt from a NYT’s article is in common use in your area?

These are the “good deaths,” the ones where the family is present and knows what to expect. Like all deaths, these deaths are difficult, but they are controlled, unsurprising, anticipated.
And then there are the other deaths: quick and rare, where life leaves a body in minutes. In my hospital these deaths are “Condition A’s.” The "A” stands for arrest, as in cardiac arrest, as in this patient’s heart has all of a sudden stopped beating and we need to try to restart it.

Thank you for your efforts.

Regards,

V.

Hi Vil, do you have a link to the article? I can't believe that there are hospitals that actually code deaths from good to bad. I've never heard of it.

[vil]

Hi Raymott,

Thank you for your taking a keen interest in the present dizzy conundrum.

There is a link concerning the matter in question:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/09/he...lth&emc=hltha1

You should have complete confidence in my source. It was an original source (straight from the horse's. mouth)


Regards,

V.

[Raymott]

Hi Raymott,

Thank you for your taking a keen interest in the present dizzy conundrum.

There is a link concerning the matter in question:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/09/he...lth&emc=hltha1

You should have complete confidence in my source. It was an original source (straight from the horse's. mouth)


Regards,

V.

Yes, Condition A here stands for our Code Blue, which is basically a signal to the cardiac arrest team to mobilise quickly to save the patient's life.
The patient died after a Condition A, so in that sense it was a Condition A death. But it seems they don't actually classify deaths that way officially.
My curiosity has been satisfied.