Posted on 04/07/2005 2:59:57 AM PDT by schmelvin
For Immediate release! To: All media, and supporters of life. From: The Family of Mae Magouirk Date: April 6, 2005 Contact: Kenneth Mullinax - Mockingbird@compuhelp.net
Shiavo case revisited in Georgia
Mae Magouirk…not comatose …not vegetative …not terminal
Why is Hospice LaGrange, Ga. withholding nourishment?
(LaGrange, Georgia) Mae Magouirk is being withheld nourishment and fluids and the provisions of her Living Will are not being honored at the Hospice-LaGrange, (1510 Vernon Street, LaGrange “Troup County” Georgia, 706-845-3905) a subsidiary of the LaGrange Hospital in LaGrange Georgia. Her family is desperately seeking to save her life before she dies of malnourishment and dehydration.
Mae Magouirk IS NOT comatose and she IS NOT vegetative. She is not terminal!
Despite these facts the Hospice and Beth Gaddy, a school teacher at LaGrange’s Calloway Middle School and granddaughter of Mae Magouirk have been denying her proactive nourishment or fluids (via a nose administered feeding tube or fluids via an IV) since March 28 without prior legal consent; against the wishes of her Living Will and against the wishes of Mae Magouirk’s closest living next of kin. Mae Magouirk’s next of kin are: Mr. A. B. McLeod (Her Brother) and Mrs. Lonnie Ruth Mullinax (Her sister) both of nearby Anniston, Alabama.
Under Georgia law, unless a medical durable power of attorney is in place, your closest living next of kin are stipulated to make all medical decisions. When Mae Magouirk’s closest living next of kin lodged a complaint with Hospice LaGrange’s in-house attorney Carol Todd last Thursday, March 31, Ms. Todd checked Mae Magouirk’s case file and upon examination of both documents discovered that Beth Gaddy DID NOT have the durable medical power of attorney for Mae Magouirk and upon closer examination of Mae Magouirk’s Living Will ascertained that fluids and nourishment were ONLY TO BE WITHHELD if she was either comatose or vegetative. SHE IS IN NEITHER STATE!!!
Nor is Mae Magouirk terminally ill. Her local LaGrange, Ga. cardiologist, Dr. James Brennan and Dr. Raed Aqel, a highly acclaimed interventional cardiologist at the nationally renowned University of Alabama-Birmingham Medical Center have determined that Mae Magouirk’s aortic dissection is contained and not presently life threatening.
Two weeks ago, Mae Magouirk’s aorta had a dissection and she was hospitalized in the LaGrange Hospital in LaGrange, Ga. Her aortic problem was at first determined to be severe and she was admitted in the intensive care Unit. Her granddaughter, Beth Gaddy, a teacher at the Calloway Middle School in LaGrange, stated that she held Mae Magouirk’s medical power of attorney and thus invoked said powers against the wishes of Mae Magouirk’s closest living next of kin by having her moved to Hospice-LaGrange. While at Hospice-LaGrange, Beth Gaddy stated that her wishes were for no nourishment for Mae Magouirk via a feeding tube or fluids via an IV. Before hospitalization Mae was lucid and never had been diagnosed with dementia as was testified to in Probate Court on Monday, April 4, by a local MD.
Page Two Mae Magouirk is being starved to death!
Upon learning from Hospice-LaGrange that Mae Magouirk was being denied nourishment and fluids and upon being told by Carol Todd (Hospice LaGrange’s in-house legal consul) that Beth Gaddy DID NOT HAVE THE PROPER LEGAL AUTHORITY to deny said nourishment AND that the denial of nourishment went against Mae Magouirk’s Living Will, Mae’s family (Mullinax/McLeod) ordered the immediate beginning of such nourishment/fluids for Mae to Hospice via Carol Todd.
First Contact with Hospice on Thursday, March 31 Carol Todd told Mrs. Lonnie Ruth Mullinax (Mae Magouirk’s sister) and Kenneth Mullinax (Mae Magouirk’s nephew) via phone on Thursday, March 31 that Georgia Law stipulated that Mrs. Mullinax and her brother A. B. McLeod (Mae Magouirk’s brother) were entitled to make any and all decisions for Mae Magouirk. Mrs. Mullinax immediately told Carol Todd to insert fluids via an IV and insert a feeding tube, via her nose. Carol Todd had the IV fluids started that evening but told the family that they would have to come to Hospice LaGrange to sign papers to have the feeding tube inserted and because of such, she believed that Mae Magouirk would no longer be a candidate for Hospice LaGrange. She was then told that Mae Magouirk’s family concurred and the ONLY REASON Mae was at Hospice was because the LaGrange Hospital had failed to exercise due diligence in closely examining the power of attorney which Beth Gaddy said she had, as well as executing the provisions of Mae’s Living Will to her preordained stipulations. Gaddy only had a financial power of attorney and did not have a medical power of attorney and Mae Magouirk’s Living Will provided that a feeding tube and fluids SHOULD ONLY BE DISSCONTINUED IF Mae was comatose or in a vegetative state. She was and is in neither state.
Attempt to rescue Mae on Friday denied by Probate Judge Donald Boyd On Friday, April 1, when A. B. McLeod (brother) and Kenneth Mullinax (nephew) showed up to meet with Carol Todd and to arrange emergency air transport of Mae Magouirk to the University of Alabama-Birmingham Medical Center (One of the top cardiovascular centers in the USA) Hospice LaGrange stalled them while Beth Gaddy went before Troup County Georgia (LaGrange, Ga.) Probate Judge Donald W. Boyd (who DOES NOT hold a law degree) who granted Beth Gaddy emergency guardianship of Mae Magouirk, giving Beth Gaddy full and absolute authority. Thus, they COULD NOT MOVE HER FOR PROACTIVE MEDICAL CARE Friday because Beth Gaddy had Hospice stop them and then she had Mae’s IV fluid tube pulled out. Beth Gaddy has repeatedly told Mr. McLeod, Mrs. Mullinax and Kenneth Mullinax that she feels they all should let Mae not eat and thus cause her to die because, and we quote Beth Gaddy: “Grandmamma is old and I think it is time she went home to Jesus. She has glaucoma, and now this heart problem and who would want to live with disabilities like these?”
As stipulated under Georgia Law, a hearing for an Emergency Guardianship, must be held within 3 days of its request and Mae Magouirk’s hearing was held on this past Monday, April 4, before Troup County Georgia Probate Judge Donald Boyd who favors granting Beth Gaddy permanent guardianship and thus will seal Mae Magouirk’s fate of allowing Beth Gaddy to starve her to death against the wishes of her Living Will and in full knowledge that Mae Magouirk is not terminal, not in a coma and is not in a vegetative state and that medical care at UAB Medical Center is awaiting her. Shiavo revisited!
Mae’s present state and vital signs Mae’s blood pressure is good, averaging 140/82 with a pulse rate of 88. However, since admission to Hospice she has not been lucid but who would be since nourishment and fluids have been denied since March 28, 2005. Also adding to her confusion is that she is off her regular medicines and is on a dose of Adavan and Morphine. Without food or water her electrolytes and body chemistry is not within its proper parameters. If her condition is not given major public attention soon, she will die, not by divine cause but by the omission of assistance by man. WE MUST GET Mae moved to UAB Medical ASAP
Resources: Probate Judge Donald Boyd…Court CASE NUMBER: Estate 138-05 Attorney for saving Mae’s life: Jack Kirby, Kirby & Roberts***
Excellent idea.
And you are right.....
:-(
I just sent this email to the family's attorney. (I will let you all know if/when I get a response.):
Mr. Kirby,
I'm writing to you regarding a press release that was posted at:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1379016/posts
According to the press release, Mae Magouirk is being starved (against her wishes as stated in her living will) by her granddaughter (who was not appointed medical power-of-attorney in Ms. Magouirk's living will, but was granted that status against Ms. Magouirk's stated wishes by Probate Judge Boyd).
Many of us at Free Republic are concerned about this development.
We are trying to verify:
1.) How accurately the press release describes the situation.
2.) The status of the case (Although I realize you may not be legally allowed to reveal much about this case to the public.)
Free Republic has a number of members who are very well connected, (politically and in the media) and we would like to help. We are attempting to verify the circumstances mentioned in the press release and the current status of the case (a clerk at Judge Boyd's office told me this morning that the matter had already been settled yesterday, but did not seem to know whether or not the matter had been settled in favor of Mae's siblings or the granddaughter).
We, at Free Republic, are prepared to move heaven and earth to help Ms. Magouirk, but we need more information. We especially need to know whether or not the matter has already been settled and whether or not it was in favor of Ms. Magouirk's stated wishes. After all, if her feeding tube has already been reinserted, then we have no need to "call in the calvary".
Thank you for your time and effort in this matter. I look forward to hearing from you.
lol
good ltr; keep us posted (I know you will).
I read it three times, I thought for sure I just wasn't comprehending the words.
Ethical medicine, illness, disease treatment and dying must be discussed.
Wait a minute. How did I miss that in your article?
Are you telling me that nursing homes and hospices buy the life insurance policies of their patients and sell them to investors, or invest it themselves?
Talk about a conflict of interest!
We need a list of media contacts. Somebody please post it, and ping everyone to it.
Bump
Bump
Bump
Bump!!!!!!!!!
You never mentioned that you write fiction.
Turn to us, and hope they haven't succeeded in silencing us.
Are you telling me that nursing homes and hospices buy the life insurance policies of their patients and sell them to investors, or invest it themselves?
Talk about a conflict of interest!
It's also a motive for murder.
And then search out who is BOD, Partners and affiliates.
It is a huge tangled mess.
From the article -
Gaddy only had a financial power of attorney
Granddaughter knows all about Grandma's finances, that's for sure.
It's one thing to express such a "presumptuous sentiment" re a person whose wishes have never been clearly expressed anywhere. It's a completely different thing to express them (as is alleged to have been done in this case) re a person who has gone to the trouble of executing a living will, and spelled out very different criteria.
However, I tend to think this story in its present form is a hoax, or a well-intentioned embellishment of a true story. Hospices don't like to get sued, nor do their insurers sit quietly by in situations like this. If there isn't a clear court order to withhold nourishment, and there is reasonable doubt as to the legal authority of the granddaughter in question to be making medical decisions for the patient, the hospice would stick the tube back in fast, and wait for a definitive decision from a court.
Pray for his soul. ;-)
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