Malkin: The Life of Baby Charlotte (UK Court OK's DNR for 2 yr old against parents' wishes)

MichelleMalkin.com ^ | 2-25-06 | Michelle Malkin

[cgk]

THE LIFE OF BABY CHARLOTTE

By

Michelle Malkin

  ·   February 25, 2006 05:29 PM

Sentenced to die

Doctors in England have won the power to withhold life support from two-year-old brain-damaged child Charlotte Wyatt--against the adamant wishes of her parents:

The parents of Charlotte Wyatt have been told that doctors are to be allowed to let their profoundly ill baby daughter die if they feel it is in her best interests. A High Court judge yesterday lifted a previous ruling that she should always be resuscitated, on the grounds that the two-year-old was now on a "downward rather than an upward trend".

Mr Justice Hedley heard an emergency application from doctors treating her that she had developed an aggressive chest infection and was unlikely to survive any moves to keep her alive.

"Medical evidence speaks with one voice, that ventilation simply will not achieve the end for which no doubt the parents would wish," he said. Charlotte's condition was said to be "deteriorating" last night. Her mother, Debbie, 24, from Portsmouth, still believes that if her daughter were ventilated she would recover.

But Mr Justice Hedley said there had been a "very significant deterioration in Charlotte's condition". It is the fifth time he has had to make a ruling about Charlotte's treatment.

Doctors at St Mary's Hospital, Portsmouth, had previously argued that her life was so intolerable that if her condition worsened they should be allowed to withhold treatment. Charlotte suffers from severe lung, brain and kidney damage. But her condition improved so much that last October the judge removed a ruling allowing doctors to let her die.

Charlotte's parents have a blog dedicated to their daughter's ongoing fight for survival here.

ProLife Blogs following the story here.

Hat tip: Allah Pundit

[cgk]

17 May 2005

Our story

Darren wrote up this account of little Charlotte's birth and the months following--- the story in their own words of Charlotte and themselves:

It all happened on the 18th of October 2003. It was one of those days when I just wanted to get out of college, then suddenly my phone kept ringing. I was at that time in class doing silver service, I was not supposed to have had my phone on, I said to my friend what shall I do he said just answer it, so I did and it was Debbie. She said that the midwife had been round and told her that she needs to go to hospital to get checked over so I rushed straight back, up to that stage we was told that the pregnancy was all ok, when we got there they monitored Debbie over the weekend then, they told us that they needed to get the baby out and the chances of survival was very minimum, so then Debbie had to go to theatre and I was there also. This was very scary I could not stop shaking Debbie was looking at me and holding my hand saying is everything ok, I just said yes as I didn't want to worry her. At around 7.30 pm on the 21st of October 2003 Charlotte was born.

I could not believe my eyes she was so tiny, only weighing 458 grams what is less than a bag of sugar, but she was alive I heard her little cry I just cried then they had to take her away into the intensive care department . We didn't even think she would make it one night. I could not sleep, I had to rush back to get Daniel who is our oldest son he was around 10 months at that time. The next day me and Debbie went to see Charlotte together for the first time, it was scary we just both looked at each other and cried we was told that Charlottes survival was less than 50% but we just held each others hands and took a deep breath, and I prayed please God let our little girl live and I believe with my heart that is what God is doing. At that time there were loads of different noises, bleeping sounds and Charlotte had loads of wires attached to her all over, she was so tiny and fragile her skin was even fragile you could see all her veins. I thought we are not giving in and I believe maybe in her own way she thought the same. We could not even hold her at that time; all we could do was containment holding what is one hand on her head and one on her stomach they call it bonding. Because Charlotte was so premature and so tiny she had problems with her lungs, kidneys, and her heart as she was born at 26 weeks all the main organs was not developed properly yet, and also this was even more fatal as Charlotte was the growth of a 19 week old baby. The reason for the early delivery was placental abruption.

I could not understand why this was not picked up at Debbie's 12 week scan, but I suppose that is another story. Anyway we both took it day by day with Charlotte has we did not know what to expect the next day, you didn't even know if she would make it a week, but a week became two weeks then they told us that Charlotte had to go to Southampton to have a operation. Charlotte was so tiny and she was going to have two clips on her heart because she had a heart murmur, what is also called a duct , this was very scary as you didn't even know if she would get through the operation but we got to Southampton and then they told us that the operation could go either way it was 50 /50 so we was horrified to hear that, so we decided to go for a walk while the operation was taking place, I was so scared as our little Charlotte could go and I we was horrified but when we returned the doctor came in with good news the operation was a success I just started to cry as I was so happy. Anyway when she came back to Portsmouth hospital we just took it day by day again doing our containment holding and just praying please God let her live. Three months went past and then it came to the time where we could hold Charlotte. It was so nice to actually hold her for the first time we felt so happy.

In Charlottes first three months she had infections and she could have died at any time as she was so fragile, but she got over those I think she even got to the stage in the first three months to be ventilated but Charlotte is a fighter and she got over all that, so at that time Charlotte was three months and she could come out of her incubator she was on the cpap at the stage and this went on for a while then she was transferred next door what was special care what is the next stage from intensive care so Charlotte was in a step in the right direction she was even feeding from a bottle then as well what I believe was in January 2004, and then she was transferred to a cot, Charlotte was diagnosed as her sight and hearing was ok and her brain was ok as well at that stage, it was just her lungs, kidneys and heart we had to worry about. Anyway Charlotte seemed to be making progress, and she was growing, then one day she had a set back. This is the one before July, but she recovered really well. I was there at that time-- it was very scary but, our Charlotte is a fighter, and after that she made tremendous progress she was even on the nasal prongs. It was now at the stage where we was looking forward to her coming home, she got to the stage in June 2004 where she was in 0.4 on the nasal prongs. We were told at that time she would be home soon if she carries on improving, then the hospital moved her from the baby unit to the children's ward, and that is when all this big set back happened.

I noticed over days her oxygen crept up, and up, and then I was told one day that she had a infection what was a blood infection, and then they had to reventilate Charlotte. Up to the stage where she was transferred she was ready to come home and she was in a lot less oxygen what she is in now, we have been told by the hospital if Charlotte gets to 30% oxygen she can come home, but she was in less oxygen than 30% when she was transferred to the children's ward so why didn't they let her go home then, as she would not have caught the blood infection what caused her set back?

Anyway I get a call saying please get to the hospital as soon as possible as Charlotte has to go on a ventilator due to a lung collapse. Then she had to be transferred to Southampton yet again, Charlotte was there for around five days and we was told that the infection had got into the brain what had caused her brain activity to be slower than when she was born, then when we got back to Portsmouth with her we was told they would not reventilate her again as it wouldn't be in her best interests. We was told by the doctors that she was basically brain dead, in pain and had no quality of life-- could not see, hear, and goes on and on, so we decided to take it to the high court.

Since September we have noticed Charlotte getting better and now she reaches out for things, she smiles she knows who her parents are her oxygen as come down and there great signs that she can see, hear and does have a quality of life. That is why we will battle on, as we believe the hospital maybe have given up on her but we have not. That is our story up to now.

[cgk]

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[the invisib1e hand]

surely if the Kingdom is going to come, it can't be too far off.

as pissed off as a mere man like I gets about this, I wonder how mad it must make The Almighty.

[Right-Wing Champion]

Simply stated, this made me tremble. It's things like this that remind us what right and wrong truly mean, and how there will always exist evil in this world that must be combated by the good.

May God shed his grace on this entire family.

[JudgemAll]

if they {doctors} feel it is in her best interests

Since when being a doctor allowed one to not look at conflicts of interests with the profession? We the sheeple cannot be represented by a jury in all matters pertaining children, it is the judges', lawyers' & "experts'" opinions in their own privacy deals for the "privacy of children". Juries & scrutiny be damned, the prophets have spoken, they want their money, but they can't fight for its value let alone the value of life itself. This kid was fighting with some help, why did we stop it? Intersting way of closing a case & destroying evidence.

[beaversmom]

I had heard of this little baby but didn't know why she was sick. Thanks for the post. How terribly sad. It sounds like she was doing pretty well before they moved her to the children's ward. Does anyone know why they did this? I feel really sad for the parents.

[EBH]

First Terry Schiavo and the arguments surrounding her.

Now, Charlotte but this argument is dramatically different. Her advocates, both her parents, saying do whatever needs to be done.

Doctors making the argument regarding her quality of life if they continue treatment vs. there is nothing else that medical science has to offer Charlotte.

Something really stinks. Why would drs. be going to court over this? There is more to this story than what we're are reading.

[MrPiper]

Why don't the parents just take her home and let gods will be what it will be.

[patj]

Brought to you by socialized medicine.

[EBH]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, just couldn't bring myself to say it. Someone somewhere is squeaking about $$$

[Wilhelm Tell]

That is why the left wants socialized medicine -- then you are at the mercy of any politician or judge and you have no right to choose doctors, etc. The fact that sometimes people who are a burden to the system are killed is not a defect of the system -- it is the system's greatest asset. It teaches people that they are subjects to the state and, as nothing more than state property, their lives can be snuffed out at any moment whenever it satisfies the econamic or ideological goals of some politician or nameless bureaucrat.

[Evie Munchkin]

My heart goes out to this family. My son was two months premature due to problems with the placenta aggravated by a placental abruption. He weighed barely over two pounds at birth where he should have weighed closer to four. Thank God that he is a very healthy six month old baby now with no lingering effects!

After we received the hospital and doctor bills we estimated that our baby boy cost our insurance company around $200,000. That would include many prenatal ultrasounds and tests, the C-section, and two months of NICU care. I figure his stay in the NICU cost about $2600 a day and they really didn't need to do much other than monitor and feed him after the first, more intensive week. I can only imagine how much more his stay would have cost if he had been seriously ill in addition to being small.

I would say that the hospital in this case is tired of eating a huge medical bill and they just want to get rid of the cause. This is so sad. And this is just one more reason not to have socialized medicine.

[freepatriot32]

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[FreedomCalls]

Coma man gives daughter away

A man from Handforth, near Wilmslow, Cheshire, woke from a coma after his life support was switched off - and ten days later gave his daughter away at her wedding.

Brian Paolo, who has emphysema, began to breathe on his own after the machine was switched off, according to The Sun.

His daughter Anne-Marie said: "The doctors had prepared us for the worst and it looked like they were right. But dad fought back.

"I couldn't believe it when he started to recover and we realised he would be there for the wedding. The doctors and nurses said they had never seen anything like it - they were astounded.

"They had told us there was no way he would be coming to our wedding and we had watched them take the tubes out of his neck. I've never seen anyone look so grey."

Brian added: "I didn't think I would make it... the doctors had given up on me. I've no immune system and my lungs are badly damaged. It was touch and go whether I would make it. But I pulled through with a bit of determination."

Anne-Marie said she collected her dad on the wedding day - just three hours after he was discharged.

She said: "My dad was supposed to get me in the car but in the end I had to collect him. I was crying when I saw him - but we had the happiest day ever."

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1736843.html

[vrwc0915]

The western world is in the last stages of crumbling this is a perfect example.

The medical "profession" has lost it's soul regardless of socialized medicine or not

[traviskicks]

Too bad the State had confiscated their money all their lives for their benefit and so now the state shall decide what they get:

http://www.neoperspectives.com/britishhealthcare.htm

[Dustbunny]

So sad. Prayers going out for Charlotte and her family. May the Lords Angels watch over her.

[Esther Ruth]

Every time I read these stories I'm reminded that when someone has a loved one in the hospital, ICU etc., it is crucial that someone in the family always be with them, watch them constantly, question everything the med professionals do, watch everything, watch the charting, ask questions. Mistakes are made all the time, meds are screwed up, dosages doubled, overlapped at shift changes etc. No matter how great that unit may be. If some unit is empty they will find a way to pull some patient from one place and get them in there for the $$$. If a patient is all right and ready to leave a high level care unit they may keep them there regardless because that unit is empty and they want the higher price beds filled. So many different agendas and it is not always in the interest of the patient, obvious I know, but.

Sometimes it is best to get patients out of the hosp as soon as possible!!! If it's treatment that can be brought into a home and be done by family - do it!! They will screw things up to crank up the bill, give meds that are not necessary to pad bills etc.,

In this case you always wonder about da**ed angels of death and their evil secret missions operating - with some agenda, screwing things up when no one is looking because they are trying to find a way out for the baby - thinking they are doing the baby a favor. Don't trust anyone, take nothing for granted if it's strangers taking care of your loved ones.

[Esther Ruth]

Praying for them and their baby girl!