The value of history and goals of care with code status; even in an emergency setting.

This is a case report involving an elderly Jehovah's Witness woman with a history of chronic anaemia who suffers cardiac arrest and is resuscitated. This case illustrates, even in an emergency setting, (1) the value of obtaining relevant history, (2) addressing code status within the framework of achievable goals of care and (3) the need to revise both history and goals of care, as more information becomes available. We also propose aspects of this discussion that would benefit from future research.