Posted on 06/07/2008 10:41:37 AM PDT by wagglebee
Winnipeg, Canada (LifeNews.com) -- A Canadian doctor has quit his job at a hospital rather than treat a severely disabled patient. Samuel Golubchuck is a terminally ill elderly patient undergoing treatment in a Winnipeg hospital's ICU and his doctors want to refuse life-sustaining treatment.
Now, the doctor who wanted to impose his values on Golubchuck by forcing him off respirator and feeding tube has resigned rather than continue treatment.
Golubchuck's family -- citing religious reasons because they are Orthodox Jews and saying it is what he wanted -- filed a lawsuit and a temporary injunction requiring doctors to not take his life.
Upset with the court's decision, Dr. Anand Kumar submitted a resignation letter and called the court order "grotesque" and "immoral."
"Given that I believe that continued support of this patient is tantamount to torture, I cannot ethically follow the mandates of the court order governing his care," Kumar wrote, according to CBC News.
Dr. Dan Roberts, director of the medical intensive-care unit at Winnipeg's Health Science Centre, told the news service he sympathizes with Kumar.
"I think it's very difficult under the circumstances to continue to have to provide care with the only intent to extend the life of a dying patient," he said.
The response drew guffaws from Wesley Smith, an attorney and author who is a leading bioethics observer.
"Gee, extending the lives of dying patients used to be a primary purpose of medicine -- at least when that is what the patient/family wanted," he said.
Smith also said the hospital staff's claims to the media about Golubchuk's condition probably don't represent his true medical status.
"I have been involved either publicly or privately in too many of these kind of cases to accept what the hospital spokespeople say about Mr. Golubchuck's condition at face value," he said.
"If they are accurate, I would probably make a different decision than this family has. But those are my values," he explained. "When it comes to extending life, I don't think the patient's values should be trumped by those of strangers--no matter how well motivated they might be."
"If the doctors/bioethicists prevail in this case, if they can force a man off of life support in pursuit of the institution's values, it is the end of patient autonomy," Smith concluded.
"Better stated, it would transform patient autonomy into a one-way-street: If you want to die by refusing treatment (or perhaps requesting euthanasia), patient autonomy rules! Otherwise, we reserve the right to refuse service."
Actually, if ALL of the pro-death doctors, nurses and medical professionals were to quit the field it would be a blessing!
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Kumar is generally an Indian name.
Welcome to universal, socialist, government-run healthcare. The patient’s choices don’t matter.
Dr. Anand Kumar, is an asian and most likely has no ethos to save human life - only the need to make money. Human life is prized in the western world and is a cheap commodity in asia.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
ALL of the pro-death doctors, nurses and medical professionals were to quit the field it would be a blessing!
Yes, it would be a blessing if they quit, but this death-lover will probably be turned into some sort of hero.
Dr. Anand Kumar .........
Dr. Anand Kumar ........
Dr. Anand Kumar ....
Dr. Anand Kumar .
Dr. Kumar
Kumar
We are all dying, doc. It's just a question of how fast and how close we are to the end. I didn't even have to go to med school to figure that out.
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You sir are an idiot.
More on this here—notice the photo of the elderly patient/victim...OJ syndrome-—CBC definitely shows where it sympathies lie..not to mention many of the Canadians that post there.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/06/04/golubchuk.html#socialcomments
with about 100 million indian muslims its a possibility
This doctor has no business trying to end the life of someone who wants to live. I think Samuel is lucky this doctor quit. I wouldn’t trust this doctor with any patient who was in critical condition but still clinging to life.
If this guy is so passionate about death, perhaps he should quit the medical profession altogether and go work for Orkin.
Slippery slope? What slippery slope?
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