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Two bioethicists, Catherine Mikus and Rev. Peter Clark, have written that "In judging futility, physicians must distinguish between an effect (which is limited to a part of the patient's body) and a benefit (which appreciably improves the patient as a whole.)" St. Louis Review, 14 Dec. 2001. Wesley Smith commented: "Treatments withheld under this policy might include antibiotics to treat infection, medicines for fever reduction, tube feeding and hydration, kidney dialysis or ventilator support.'" He continued: "Persons could dehydrate or die of an infection when water or antibiotics are withheld. But for Clark and Mikus, to intervene medically in such cases is only to prolong a seemingly meaningless life.' "Once medical futility becomes the standard in health care, a poor prognosis, which can be erroneous and is seldom precise, will become a death sentence."
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