What Is Full Code in Medical Terms?
                     What Is Full Code 
in Medical 
Terms?
• Throughout this article, we’re going to take a closer 
look and explore what kind of significance the term 
“full code” has for medical professionals like yourself. 
We’ll also be taking a look at a few different 
examples so you can see where it might be used, 
including what kind of impact it can have on patient 
care in general for health care professionals.
Defining Full Code
• Put simply, “full code” is basically just a term that 
signifies that every possible measure that can be 
used in order to save a patient’s life should be used – 
whether that’s cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) 
or any other kind of intervention deemed necessary
   by your physicians, obviously depending on 
the specific case.
• It’s also worth noting that a default code 
status might be applied if a patient doesn’t 
provide explicit instructions regarding their 
code status, which almost always just involves 
providing full code interventions unless stated 
otherwise.
• Aside from this, advance directives, like do-
not-resuscitate (DNR) orders, can also be 
outlined by ill patients in advance.
Examples of Full Code 
Situations
• So that you’ve got a better understanding of how full code 
actually works, let’s walk through a few different 
hypothetical scenarios where you might see the term used:
1. Cardiac Arrest
• If someone who’s suddenly experiencing a cardiac arrest 
walks into your small medical practice, as per their full 
code status, your medical team would naturally begin to 
provide chest compressions to them and administer any 
other kind of life support that may be necessary for the 
heart to function – like a defibrillator, for instance, so your 
physicians can try to
    restore their normal heart rhythm.
2. Respiratory Failure
• Moving forward, anyone with severe respiratory 
distress who is brought into your practice would also 
be designated as full code, despite their critical 
health status. After this, your health care team 
would, of course, begin to provide things like oxygen 
therapy and ventilatory support so that you’re able 
to improve respiratory function and generally 
support the patient’s breathing.
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