Last week, the news broke that the Vatican issued a ruling that “clarified” the Catholic Church’s position on artificial nutrition and hydration in regard to individuals diagnosed as being in a vegetative state. There will be more on this blog about this next week – mostly about some of the “the sky is falling” comments … Continue reading Do bioethicists actually read the stories they post on blogs?
This newest case of apparent death through neglect and malpractice came to my attention by way of Penny Richards at the Disability Studies blog, in “Yes, it can happen. It does happen.” Penny has some good comments on the death of Linda Sue Brown, and I urge interested people to read them. But you also … Continue reading Calif.: Another Hospital Death, Documented Neglect and Fraud, But No One Did Anything Wrong
Things are a little behind here, in terms of posting and commenting on news items. On Sunday, September 16th, Diane Coleman and Steve Gold were quoted in a Seattle Times article titled “Some favor slower right to die for paralyzed.” Not the best title, but a predictable one. An alternative and accurate title might have … Continue reading Diane Coleman and Steve Gold in Seattle Times Story
I recently attended a medical ethics seminar held at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago that reaffirmed medical practice guidelines about brain injury. Doctors continue to agree that it is necessary to wait before they can predict brain injury outcomes with reasonable, though they also admit not total, certainty. For traumatic brain injury (e.g. car accidents), … Continue reading Rush to Judgment Ends Lives of Newly Disabled
Last week, during the national ADAPT Action here in Chicago, several people forwarded one of those stories that brought to mind Yogi Berra’s “This is like deja vu all over again.” The story that provoked this “I’ve seen this before” feeling was about Jill Finley, who came out of a coma – 14 days after … Continue reading Miracles, Malpractice, Survivors and Recovery
