On September 16, ABC News in Oakland, California reported on a hospital’s threat to remove breathing support from six-month-old Kingston Holmes. The infant needed a ventilator due to a brain injury following a cardiac arrest at home. The first thing I ask when I read a story like that is when did the cardiac arrest … Continue reading Neurology Guidelines Push Back Against “Rush To Judgment” In Brain Injury Cases
It’s become fairly clear over the past few years that two trends in medicine are in conflict, albeit mostly under the radar. On one hand, several promising research and clinical developments have given reason to be cautiously optimistic about the recovery potential of at least some people with significant brain damage, and has led to … Continue reading Joseph Fins, Expert on Consciousness, Calls for Temperance re: Organ Solicitation and Severe Brain Injury
Once again, an item featured on Thaddeus Pope‘s Medical Futility Blog turned out to be something that I wanted to explore in greater detail than the brief blurb given on his blog, in his September 10th post, Hospitals Vary in How Quickly LST Is Stopped: In “Mortality associated with withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy for patients … Continue reading Study: Treatment Withdrawal & Death for Patients with Severe Brain Injury Vary By Hospital
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
