TO PULL OR NOT TO PULL...

THAT IS THE QUESTION

Which brings me to today's post.

On my way back from DTB,

I listened to my famous Sirius XM 

talk radio to be exact. A discussion was going on

about people being kept alive on ventilators and

the rights of the hospital, patient and families.

The first case is one I have been following.

A thirteen year old girl, goes in last Christmas season

for a tonsillectomy. A simple, one day surgery.

However, there is a reason why consent are very detailed

and necessary. There is no such thing as a "simple surgery".

In this beautiful child's case she looses too much blood

and looses all body functions causing lack of oxygen

to those same vital organs. CPR is performed and she is 

placed on a ventilator. In the last year her condition has

done nothing but decline and although the hospital and

a few doctors have pronounced her brain dead, her

parents refuse to believe this, having faith that a miracle

will take place. My nursing experience tells me that

after a year, with a flat EEG, the only miracle this child

would be granted is a trip to her Heavenly Father.

Yeah, it sucks and I feel for the parents but I side

with the courts on this one.

A few days before Christmas a judge proclaimed

she is already dead and will be pulled off the plug 

some date in January. the courts have even produced a 

death certificate with the date the "plug will be pulled"

The family continues to appeal to keep her on tube feedings 

and life support. Poor family. On this case, I side with the courts.

If she is alive as the parents say she is, then when the vent is

disabled, she will continue to breath.

She deserved to die in decency not after years of withering away

in a hospital bed. I do feel so darn sad for the parents and if

in their shoes I know it would be hard, but I would not continue.

The next story is more heart wrenching and a harder decision to be made.

Since November of 2013, this pregnant Mother from Texas 

has been on life support after sustaining some type of blood clot

causing her to have oxygen deprivation.

Both she and her husband, being paramedics,

 have made their wishes be known:

"No life support if EEG shows brain death and no quality of life

will ever be."

There is a glitch in the Texas law.

You see she is 18 weeks pregnant for their second child.

and TX law states that when  mother is pregnant that said

mother will be kept alive until the time comes that the

baby is viable to sustain life. OOH, this one is complicated.

Basically she is an incubator for the sweet baby.

Would her wishes be different if she could awaken and know that

her baby will also die if pulled from life support now.

Her husband and her family are challenging the Texas courts.

They have valid points.

1) Because of lack of oxygen to the Mother, the fetus was also.

There is chance this child may be born with many medical needs.

The father would rather not have this burden as a single parent.

2) Would she want to be kept alive if it meant her baby 

would be healthy?

3) Should the law override a living will and if so, why

have them?

I am on the fence with this one.

No one has the right to choose for another their last wishes

but what about this baby? Doesn't it have a right to a chance at life?

I will follow/pray/think of this one until the decision is made.

In my heart, I am kind of hoping the child is brought into the

world to live with his/her family as a reminder of the beautiful 

Mother and what she did to save her/him.