An elderly woman with chronic kidney disease told her daughters that if she ever ended up with dementia she wouldn't want to live like that. Years later she developed senile dementia and moved into a nursing home. Although she did not recognize family or friends, she enjoyed the company of others and the nursing home's cat. When her kidneys stopped functioning, staff at the nursing home expressed ambivalence about the value of kidney dialysis, yet asked her daughters whether their mother should be started on dialysis.

A patient who has coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure shows his physician his advance directive that states he wants to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other forms of life-sustaining treatment.

What should the doctor say to the patient in response to this?

A patient tells his family that he would never want to be "kept alive like a vegetable".

What is meant by the term "vegetable"?