Dead on arrival

Dead on arrival or DOA is a notation that a patient was brought to a hospital and immediately pronounced dead by a physician. The term arises because first responders such as emergency medical technicians (a.k.a. paramedics or ambulance drivers) do not have the authority to pronounce a patient dead (in the U.S. at least), and they are obliged, in the absence of a do not resuscitate order, to attempt resuscitation if there is any possibility of life and to continue resuscitation until the patient has been examined by a physician, which usually occurs only after the patient has been brought to a hospital.

Related Topics:
Dead - First responder - Emergency medical technician - Paramedics - U.S. - Do not resuscitate

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Also, Dead On Arrival is a New York heavy metal band founded by drummer Rick Ferrusi, and is sometimes abbreviated as D.O.A.

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Colloquially, anything which is received in a non-operational (broken) state can be called DOA or dead on arrival. If a new product, such as a computer, arrives "DOA" then it is likely that the recipient will call the supplier to get a Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA), a transaction that acknowledges that (apparently defective) goods will be returned to the supplier for refund, replacement or credit. Sometimes it is difficult to actually detect a defective or DOA product. With computers, for instance, it might require a boot image to be installed and run through a test suite to detect any failed parts.

Related Topics:
Computer - Return Merchandise Authorization - RMA - Boot image

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When, as with computers, product complexity is high and diagnostics are involved, the medical metaphor is perhaps appropriate, as complex diagnostics might be required to determine if the product "is really dead".

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