Posted on 03/23/2005 7:27:11 AM PST by queenkathy
Tuesday, March 22, 2005 11:52 p.m. EST
Second, Third Nurse Accuse Michael Schiavo
Two additional nurses have filed affidavits in the Terri Schiavo case that corroborate bombshell allegations by nurse Carla Sauer Iyer, who went public on Tuesday with claims that Michael Schiavo had deliberately withheld treatment from his disabled wife.
Heidi Law was a certified nursing assistant at the Palm Garden Convalescent Center in Largo, Fla., where she treated Mrs. Schiavo in 1997.
Story Continues Below
In an affidavit filed with the court in August 2003, Ms. Law maintained:
"I know that Terri did not receive routine physical therapy or any other kind of therapy. I was personally aware of orders for rehabilitation that were not being carried out. Even though they were ordered, Michael would stop them."
Law continued:
"Michael ordered that Terri receive no rehabilitation or range of motion therapy. I and [another CNA] would give Terri range of motion anyway, but we knew we were endangering our jobs by doing so.
"We usually did this behind closed doors," Law said, because "we were so fearful of being caught ... we were always looking out for Michael, because we knew that, not only would Michael take his anger out on us, but he would take it out more on Terri. We spoke of this many times."
"At least three times during any shift where I took care of Terri, I made sure to give Terri a wet washcloth filled with ice chips, to keep her mouth moistened.
"On three or four occasions I personally fed Terri small mouthfuls of Jello, which she was able to swallow and enjoyed immensely. I did not do it more often only because I was so afraid of being caught by Michael."
Like nurse Iyer, Law suspected that Michael was mistreating Terri, noting in her sworn statement:
"Several times when Michael visited Terri during my shift, he went into her room alone and closed the door. This worried me because I didn’t trust Michael.
"When he left, Terri was very agitated, was extremely tense with tightened fists and sometimes had a cold sweat. She was much less responsive than usual and would just stare out the window, her eyes kind of glassy. ...
"We were convinced that he was abusing her, and probably saying cruel, terrible things to her because she would be so upset when he left."
"The Palm Gardens staff, myself included, were just amazed that a 'Do Not Resuscitate' order had been put on Terri’s chart, considering her age and her obvious cognitive awareness of her surroundings."
Carolyn Johnson, a certified nursing assistant who worked at the Sabal Palms nursing home in Largo, said Terri's mistreatment went back to at least 1993.
"During this assignment I took care of Terri Schiavo several times," Johnson said in her own August 2003 affidavit.
"I learned, as part of my training, that there was a family dispute and that the husband, as guardian, wanted no rehabilitation for Terri. This surprised me, as I did not think a guardian could go against a doctor's orders like that, but I was assured that a guardian could and that this guardian had gone against Terri's doctor's orders."
Johnson recalled: "No one was allowed to just go in and see Terri. Michael had a visitors list. We all knew that we would lose our jobs if we did not do exactly what Michael said to do."
Johnson continued:
"I remember seeing Michael Schiavo only once the entire time I worked at Sabal Palms, but we were all aware that Terri was not to be given any kind of rehabilitative help, per his instructions.
"Once, I wanted to put a cloth in Terri's hand to keep her hand from closing in on itself, but I was not permitted to do this," Johnson said, "as Michael Schiavo considered that to be a form of rehabilitation."
patient privacy
My understanding is that an MRI cannot be done because of a medical procedure done on Terri early on. Thats what was reported on FNC
The fear you talk about is not death, it is the fear you feel when you see a severely disabled person and tremble at the thought it might be you. That is the fear that attorneys like Felos and the media have played on to push the culture of death into the public square.
You need to look in the mirror and give yourself an honest assessment. Does the fear of severe disability impact your thinking? For the record I have the same fear but I don't let it affect the facts of the case. And the facts are clear, this is BS.
I predict Terri's priest when he attempts to bring a drop of water to Terri will be arrested not by the police but by Terri's own Catholic Bishop, Lynch, who thinks Michael Schiavo is a swell guy.
So, the order by the state of Florida removing food and water is illicit, correct?
These "nurses" that are being gratuitously criticized are probably $8/hr LPN's. I don't think it is seemly to place more responsibility on them in an arena of high octane docs and lawyers.
I still think the bone scan should be investigated. The neck fracture is consistent with strangulation. Maybe that is how her brain was deprived of oxygen. The other bone fractures are suspicious as well. An ex-girlfrien had to get a restraining order placed against Michael for stalking. So, I would say he is likely a serial abuser.
On a side note, I would love to see the medical records of his live in girlfriend. As well as have her interviewed by a psychologist trained in abused spouses. I would bet he abuses her as well. How can you watch this unfold and still be with this man. Is it a fear of what will happen if you leave? I wonder.
Patient privacy would not be an issue if someone was comitting a criminal act against a helpless patient. Which is what the nurses are stating.
If Terri dies (God help her AND US!!), would not her parents be able to file a wrongful death suit against Judge Greer and Michael Schiavo and use all the evidence they have regarding Michael's failure to "act in the best interest" of Terri?
There has been no CT since 1996. PET is doable. MRI is doable if they remove the device in Terri's brain which was urged by the guy who put it there years ago.
LOL, gallows humor. You are right of course, the Bishop is hopelssly ignorant of the facts of the case. May God set illuminate his cloudy thinking.
that might could be called harsh and intemperate, Diogenesis... but it's spot-on IMO. Just notice Greer's cold-hard stare. ((shudder))
There has been no CT since 1996. PET is doable. MRI is doable if they remove the device in Terri's brain which was urged by the guy who put it there years ago.
That is what I heard on FNC, thanks for updating my post, I couldn't quite get it all into words.
That's because you probably haven't taken the time to research this. I was ignorant of the details of this case, up until recently, also.
After one looks at all the info, ( as the judges HAVE NOT) one can only come to the conclusion that something stinks here, and it is coming from the direction of a husband who:
-is living with another woman, fathered two children with,
-collected a million plus dollar malpractice lawsuit, which was supposed to be spent on Terry Schiavo's medical care, and was not.
this gets more and more disgusting. Isn't that a familiar tactic, de-humanize someone who is INCONVENIENT. ptui
You then may be interested in this thread I resurrected from Aug 1998
It Can't Happen Here...Can It?
"A witness to Hitler and an official observer at the Nuremberg war crimes trials warns against what happens when a nation’s moral foundations are shattered But his years studying in Berlin in the shadow of Hitler have perhaps had the greatest effect in shaping him. Today, he has many things to say as our culture continues to wallow in abortion on demand and careens headlong toward physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia and even eugenics, the belief that we can "improve" the human race through science.
The living room and study of his Colorado Springs home groan beneath the weight of books and testify to a keen intelligence and wide-ranging curiosity. Plutarch’s Lives of the Caesars, Winston Churchhill’s five-part history of World War II, an entire shelf of Tolstoy and the complete works of Martin Luther in both English and German mingle with The Basic Writings of Thomas Jefferson and biographies of Stonewall Jackson and Sir Thomas More.
The Rev. Charles Carroll, who at 82 has the intellectual vigor of a man 50 years his junior, has just about seen it all in his lifetime. But his years studying in Berlin in the shadow of Hitler have perhaps had the greatest effect in shaping him. Today, he has many things to say as our culture continues to wallow in abortion on demand and careens headlong toward physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia and even eugenics, the belief that we can "improve" the human race through science. ………………………..”
and Terri and her brother resemble each other greatly. Probably because of that, I find watching him speak to be chilling.
There has to be a higher purpose to all of this madness. I pray that there is.
the nurses had suspicions, not proof. none had personally witnessed him injecting or abusing her. they could only report her condition after his "visits".
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