A display of the response pattern among physicians who classified the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment as a defensible act
| Case 1 | Case 2 | Case 3 | ||
| 77-year-old woman | 36-year-old man | 34-year-old man | ||
| Dialysis | Dialysis | Ventilator | ||
| A defensible act | Male | 90 (87–93) | 80 (76–84) | 67 (62–72) |
| Female | 85 (80–90) | 64 (57–71) | 63 (56–70) | |
| <54 years | 92 (89–95) | 77 (72–82) | 64 (59–69) | |
| >53 years | 85 (81–89) | 72 (67–77) | 67 (62–72) | |
| Internal medicine | 89 (83–95) | 73 (65–81) | 67 (58–76) | |
| Surgery | 94 (90–98) | 82 (75–89) | 64 (55–73) | |
| Anaesthesiology | 95 (91–99) | 86 (80–92) | 71 (63–79) | |
| Subspeciality internal medicine | 93 (88–98) | 79 (71–87) | 72 (63–81) | |
| General practice | 80 (72–88) | 65 (55–75) | 56 (46–66) | |
| Psychiatry | 76 (68–84) | 61 (52–70) | 61 (52–70) | |
The break between older/younger physicians is set at 53 years (mean age). The results are presented as proportions with a 95% CI.