If a patient (like your father) wishes of his own free will to pass up a life extending operation, that is one thing. To be pressured by bureaucrats into doing this is quite another thing.
He is incompetent, and was declared such 10 months ago. He had the foresight to write up a living will ten years ago, specifying DNR (do not resuscitate) and that he does not want any extraordinary life extending measures taken to keep him alive.
We are talking Alzheimers disease here, folks; he no longer has responsibility for his own decisions. I make the determinations for his medical care.
My primary concern is that he not be frightened or stressed.
Alzheimers is terminal. He could live for years, or he could be dead in a couple months. What matters is that he not suffer or be uncomfortable, as that is a stressor that can worsen his Alzheimers and shorten his life.
This does not mean I want his life to end sooner than necessary. It is just that weighing the effects of medical care against the benefits of that care has to be determined.
He has had two types of surgeries, very minor; one type for double hernias and the second type two surgeries for cataracts requiring replacement of corneas. All surgeries were successful, one day only events, and without any noticeable stressful impact on his frame of mind.