Wesley J. Smith: Futile Care: Teenager Forced Off Life Support Survives to Tell the Tale

First Things/Secondhand Smoke ^ | 3/10/11 | Wesley J. Smith

[wagglebee]

This would have been a bigger story in the USA where patients still have the right to fight these things.  In New Zealand, doctors forced a badly injured teenager–Kimberly McNeill, center in the photo at left–off of life support.  But contrary to their certainty, she didn’t die.  From the story:

A teenage girl whose life support was switched off by a New Zealand hospital against her family’s wishes defied the odds to recover and returned home this week — walking and talking. Doctors forecasted that Kimberly McNeill, 18, would never recover from her severe injuries and 15 days after being transferred to Auckland City Hospital, authorities turned off the life support machine, the New Zealand Herald reported Sunday. Defying the odds, she pulled through and this week, two months after the wreck, which nearly claimed her life, returned to her parents’ home in Napier, on New Zealand’s North Island, to continue her rehabilitation, Hawkes Bay Today reported.

Note the short time given for the girl to recover! It reminds me of the Haleigh Poutre case in Massachusetts.  She’d be dead now if doctors had had their way in a timely fashion.  She was only saved because the death bureaucratic necessities gave her time to wake up.

This is a warning.  Doctors don’t know everything.  Hospitals are not always right.  Futile care theory not only violates patient autonomy, but it could abandon some–not many, but some–to death when they might otherwise have lived.  And don’t say, “Well, these girl lived, so what’s the harm?”  The harm is that was no thanks to the futilitarians.  Indeed, Kimberly’s life was surely put at greater jeopardy by the futile care imposition, not the other way around.

[wagglebee]

This is a warning. Doctors don’t know everything. Hospitals are not always right. Futile care theory not only violates patient autonomy, but it could abandon some–not many, but some–to death when they might otherwise have lived. And don’t say, “Well, these girl lived, so what’s the harm?” The harm is that was no thanks to the futilitarians.

Smith nails it here!

[wagglebee]

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[wagglebee]

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[Nonsense Unlimited]

God 1, Doctors 0

As it has been since the beginning of time.

[little jeremiah]

I’m going to click all the links and find the details. This story has a happen conclusion; how many don’t?

[little jeremiah]

From one link:

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/03/07/teen-returns-home-2-months-hospital-turns-life-support/print

---

McNeill said both he and Kimberly’s mother, Jackie Kiddle, had not been able to accept the doctors’ prognosis, and had drawn on specialist acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners for support during the critical period when life support was withdrawn.

Both Kimberly’s parents are acupuncturists.

[G Larry]

If the state is given the power to determine when critical care is withheld, those criteria will continue to widen. People will be evaluated based on cost control, rather than successful healing.

“Your 3 day flu just moved to day 4 and treating pneumonia is too expensive, so we’re through with you now.”

This little quote is from my college term paper, in which I was battling the instructor’s anti-life agenda. It cost me a letter grade, but tough!

[wagglebee]

You are exactly right.

While it is true that new medical techniques are expensive, AS THEY ARE USED, the cost drops in time. This is the case with ALL technology.

[metmom]

Love your tagline.

CS Lewis is great.

[SECURE AMERICA]

Certainly many doctors think they are God but none of them are.

[TASMANIANRED]

Physicians are becoming killers rather than healers.

Once trust in the profession is eroded, they will never get it back.

[Golden Gate]

...and a transfer was expected to begin as soon as the weekend...

Baby Joseph transfer could be imminent - Canada to USA   (... could be? )
The London Free Press ^ | March 11, 2011 7:04pm | JONATHAN SHER

New Friday Article: Let's acknowledge the plight of baby Joseph
The Windsor Star ^ | 3/9/11 | Jean Echlin - Canada

Short, *MUST READ* Article Doctors said "Futile" & kicked her off Life Support, - by God's Grace she is alive! =>>

Wesley J. Smith: Futile Care: Teenager Forced Off Life Support Survives to Tell the Tale

Japan Relief - Update from Dan Iverson, Japan Country Director (Mission to the World)

[little jeremiah]

I just ordered some CS Lewis books (not your favorite ones...heh heh) but none were available. Gotta try again, maybe more of his books.

[trisham]

There’s a picture of her here prior to the accident:

http://www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/local/news/critically-ill-teen-a-battler-says-teacher/3936574/

[little jeremiah]

Thanks, I clicked every link but some didn’t have anything about her story.

[trisham]

This is an important story. Life is precious.

[little jeremiah]

Very important. There has to be ways to bring down the cost of some hospital care - I think there are way too many malpractice suits and attendant lawyers, for one.

Medical savings accounts. Less gov’t stuff like Medicare which has HUGE fraud problems. It’s a huge problem and intelligent non-socialist non-death cultists need to figure it out.

There used to be so many Catholic hospitals with nuns working them. What happened to them?

[little jeremiah]

Also I bet all kinds of volunteers would be more than willing to help in hospitals. But the red tape and insurance red tape is so onerous it’s almost impossible. Has to change. Volunteers can get trained for all kinds of helping tasks and services.

[trisham]

Very important. There has to be ways to bring down the cost of some hospital care - I think there are way too many malpractice suits and attendant lawyers, for one.

Medical savings accounts. Less gov’t stuff like Medicare which has HUGE fraud problems. It’s a huge problem and intelligent non-socialist non-death cultists need to figure it out.

There used to be so many Catholic hospitals with nuns working them. What happened to them?

*********************************

There's much that needs to be done regarding all government programs, but some limitations might end up with unintended consequences. It needs to be done very carefully.

What happened to Catholic hospitals? A couple of things come immediately to mind. First is the payouts regarding sexual abuse by priests. That was a very costly blow to the Church. The second, I believe, had to do with abortion. Catholic hospitals refused to permit abortion, and chose to close rather than to submit to government controls which required that they do so.

[trisham]

I’ll bet they would, too.