Disability Health Disparities Based on Negative Quality of Life Judgments Must Be Challenged

…will be non-discriminatory. Another increasingly frequent scenario is the “rush to judgment” in response to a new brain injury. Some physicians are slapping “persistent vegetative state” diagnoses on people long before neurological literature would say it’s “appropriate”, and then using that diagnosis as an argument for withholding life-sustaining treatment. One such case involved a young girl, Haleigh Poutre. Physicians argued for withdrawing lif…

Blog Bonanza: Montana and Assisted Suicide

…to comfort those who cannot be healed. This is our mission. Our patients trust us with preserving and protecting their lives. If we were to hasten or cause death, regardless of the motive, we squander this trust and sacrifice the essence of what it means to be doctors. It would change how we physicians view our own profession and would certainly change how society view us. Euthanasia would conspire with overzealous organ procurement in intensive…

Anderson Cooper, CNN and Kevorkian – Advertising Masquerading as Journalism

…ine of questioning that would undermine the portrayal of Kevorkian as constructed in the movie – or of the man himself – would go against the financial interests of the parent company. I have no doubt they are counting on this product to boost advertising sales and bring in some DVD revenue, not to mention some prestigious Emmys. Fair enough, I guess. Long live capitalism. But maybe there should have been a statement of full disclosure about the r…

BMJ Editor Says He Doesn’t “Get” Disability Opposition to Assisted Suicide – Is He Really That Stupid or Just a Liar?

…efore irrelevant to the debate. He conveniently omits any mention of the struggles her husband had during a recent health crisis – having to convince doctors that his wife’s life was one worth living – and saving. Or Campbell’s own concerns about how easily she could have been talked into an easy death in her debilitated state. (Quotes are in this blog entry – the links from the original news coverage aren’t working for me right now.) Further, he…

More on Betancourt

…es, but he’s an impressive researcher who has posted links to research and news coverage that I’ve found valuable. He also seems to make an honest attempt to be a fair reporter on issues he highlights on his blog, while making his own perspective clear (I do think he falls short of the mark at times, but I would guess he’d say the same about me). Pope wrote and filed an amicus brief in the Betancourt case, and I’ll let him explain his position in…