An 84-year-old woman with severe Alzheimer's disease is admitted to your skillednursing facility. She has lost the ability to communicate, is bed-bound, and unable to eat. She did not appoint a proxy and there is no written or clear verbal advance directive of what she wanted for herself. Multiple family members routinely visit her and you are unable to achieve a clear consensus amongst the family of what the patient's wishes were.
What should you do in terms of her care?
a. Follow the wishes of the eldest child.
b. Follow what you think is best.
c. Ask another attending physician's opinion.
d. Ask the hospital administrator for consent.
e. Pursue an ethics committee evaluation.