A particular issue for using NIV as a palliative tool is that of patients bearing a do‐not‐intubate (DNI) order (patients with life‐threatening ARF who refuse intubation/tracheostomy).6, 107, 108 In this respect, NIV may be used palliatively but also with a ‘curative’ aim. The latter would be the case in a reversible cause of ARF, despite these patients frequently experiencing severe respiratory acidosis and hypercapnia with associated encephalopathy, which are potential predictors of NIV failure. We lack RCT in this scenario, but in observational studies, the use of NIV in patients with ‘DNI’ was associated, at least in some subsets of patients (COPD and congestive heart failure), with a surprisingly high (>30–60%) hospital survival and a 3‐month quality of life equivalent to patients treated with NIV and having no limitation placed on support.109The use of NIV is becoming increasingly popular in patients with DNI or as a palliative tool in terminally ill patients, but clinicians should have very clear goals regarding therapy in these patients.