Breaking: Emergency injunction filed to stop hospital from discontinuing baby's care

Jill Stanek ^ | November 23, 2009 | Jill Stanek

[moonpie57]

UPDATE, 3:45p: The ADF lawsuit and pro-life hubbub caused the "ethics panel" to decide today to formally agree not to withdraw care for Baby Gabriel. Thanks to all who reposted and called the hospital!

ADF writes:

The agreement between the hospital and Baby Gabriel's mother has not yet been put in writing. ADF attorneys are withdrawing their motion for a temporary restraining order but will not withdraw the complaint until a written agreement is finalized. Until then, the lawsuit is still active.

ADF legal counsel Matt Bowman said, "We are pleased with the ethic panel's decision but look forward to full resolution in writing so Baby Gabriel's life will no longer be in danger."

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The Alliance Defense Fund just filed an emergency injunction and restraining order in response to the decision a couple hours ago by an "ethics panel" at East Tennessee Children's Hospital to discontinue care of 9-month-old Gabriel Palmer.

According to an ADF press release:

Baby Gabriel was born prematurely with a genetic abnormality, club foot, and narrow airway, but he flourished when he went home from the hospital in June, where he grew, played, and received physical therapy while going to regular doctor visits. He was fed through a tube and received some oxygen and medications.

On an October weekend when the baby's regular doctors were unavailable, Palmer took her son to the ETCH emergency room because of breathing problems. After interventions by the medical staff, the baby went into shock, developed pulmonary vascular disease, and was placed on a respirator.

Despite the complications, Baby Gabriel is in stable condition, and an ETCH doctor determined he could live "a long while." The child is alert, active, and responsive when not sedated. In recent days while awake, he spent time kicking his feet, tried to play with his stuffed animals, listened to his mother and grandmother, and responded to his favorite music.

The ADF press release continues:

ETCH recently began giving up on Baby Gabriel's care, and on Nov. 13, the head of ETCH's PICU, Dr. Kevin Brinkmann [pictured right], told Palmer that the hospital was going to stop feeding him milk and giving him his medications, as well as disconnect his respirator, because the staff considered his care "futile."

Brinkmann said a formal "ethics panel" meeting at 12p EST Monday would determine whether to stop treating Baby Gabriel, but he noted that the decision was already a foregone conclusion. Ethics panel members have already said they will decide to cease the baby's care despite his mother's objections. ETCH's policies declare that treatment can be withdrawn over the family's objections as soon as the ethics panel makes its decision.

After doctors decided that Baby Gabriel was not worth treating, ETCH started discriminating against him by denying his basic care. Staff stopped bathing him, ceased applying cream to alleviate his chapped skin, reduced his diaper changes, and have not allowed his physical therapy. ETCH doctors have also discouraged Palmer's attempts to have her son transferred to other medical facilities where he could receive treatment.

ADF filed the motion for restraining order and injunction in Palmer v. East Tennessee Children's Hospital Association... which has set a hearing... for 3::30p EST Monday....

Call the ETCH Community Relations Office at 865-541-8165 to express your outrage. I just did.

[SaraJohnson]

Who knows when the wind will blow. All we know is that it will blow.

[MajorThomas]

From Previous Post: The Government has launched a High Court bid to maintain secrecy over the abortion of babies with club feet. Published: 7:00AM GMT 13 Nov 2009 In an extraordinary move, the Department of Health is taking the Government's own Information Tribunal to court to overturn a landmark Freedom of Information Act ruling. The case, which is set to cost the taxpayer thousands, aims to prevent the publication of controversial statistics including late terminations for disabled babies, which are legal under Ground E of the Abortion Act, right up to birth.

This same law allows for the killing of babies right up to birth with club foot disorders: People like Troy Aikman, Pat Summerall, Sir Walter Scott, George Gordon Byron, Thaddeus Stevens, Mia Hamm, David Lynch, Freddy Sanchez, Gary Burghoff (Radar), Dudley Moore, Charles Woodson, Damon Wayans, Claudius, etc... all had club feet (foot).

Sooooo, I guess this same hospital would have killed Troy Aikmen, because he was born with a club foot!

Let the games begin: I guess these doctors just couldn't wait until Obamascare Health Care to start, and they decided to initiate their own death panels, for what? To save a few bucks! They are to lose their privileges at this hospital!

[Sibre Fan]

Wow.
For those who don’t believe it’s worth picking up the phone to call, this is a ***GREAT*** lesson.

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UPDATE, 3:45p: The ADF lawsuit and pro-life hubbub caused the “ethics panel” to decide today to formally agree not to withdraw care for Baby Gabriel. Thanks to all who reposted and called the hospital!
http://www.jillstanek.com/archives/2009/11/breaking_hospit.html

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La Chaim

[ElkGroveDan]

Who in their right mind would ever take their child to that hospital after this incident?

[trumandogz]

And if you can pay your child’s hospital bills, you can control which way the wind does blow.

[Tennessee Nana]

East Tennessee Children’s Hospital
____________________________________________

Where’s this ????

[Marty62]

When politics get involved in the Life and Death decisions of HealthCare.
Death wins. Always

[wagglebee]

Pinged from Terri Dailies

[tnlibertarian]

There can be no possible excuse to deny this child basic care and decency.

Can you show me where I said differently? I said we weren't getting the whole story. Have you ever known lawyers to embellish, exaggerate or repeat unsubstantiated accusations to further their cause? I'm saying that the nurses I had personal, first-hand contact with would not do that. I saw them deal with infants that they knew weren't going to make it, with babies whose parents never visited them after they were born, with preemies from families with no insurance and never once was their care and concern anything but professional and nurturing.

[MajorThomas]

Damned Right! I always thought that the highest dictum in medical care is primum nil nocere or Do No Harm.....

When Lori Reimuller learns that her young son Robbie has epilepsy, she first trusts the judgment of the hospital staff in how best to bring it under control. As Robbie's health slides radically downhill, however, she becomes frustrated and desperate, and so does her own research into the existing literature on treatments. When she decides to try an alternative treatment called the Ketogenic Diet, devised long ago by a doctor from Johns Hopkins, she is met with narrow-minded resistance from Robbie's doctor, who is prepared to take legal action to prevent Lori from removing him from the hospital. This movie (...first, Do No Harm) is an indictment of those in the medical profession who discuss only the treatment options they favor. Several of the minor characters are portrayed by people who have been not just helped, but cured by the Ketogenic diet. (Based on a true story)

I submit here, that there are weak minded doctors out there that will not only submit to the frailties of their own prejudices, but the very powerful directives of the United States Government! And whenever we as a country allow for the government to dictate how medicine is to be managed, we will all suffer, we will all die. Remember the adage: he who hires himself as a lawyer, has a fool for a client.

...with that in mind, it is painfully obvious that if you give up control of your doctor to the government for life or death decisions, you may as well give up, because they are as bad as the bad doctors who don't give a damn about your well-being. And when the government takes over health care, the good doctors will leave.

[Gondring]

Why wouldn’t you just arrange for a transfer for your children to a hospital with better facilities?

Note this part of the story posted:

ETCH doctors have also discouraged Palmer's attempts to have her son transferred to other medical facilities where he could receive treatment.

Sick. If true, this shows utter disregard of the patient's or family's rights, demonstrating that the decision was not motivated by any concern for the patient.

But we all know that people aren't fit to decide for themselves whether they are to live or die...we need Obama and ethics panels to decide for us. :-(

[PatriotGirl827]

My God. What are we coming to?

[Shimmer1]

I wasn’t correcting you, I was just sayin.

[Gondring]

Statement regarding Gabriel Palmer from Keith Goodwin, President/CEO of East Tennessee Children’s Hospital

Monday, November 23, 2009 – 4:45 p.m.

There has been much interest regarding Gabriel Palmer, who is a patient at East Tennessee Children’s Hospital currently in critical condition. There also have been inaccurate allegations regarding Gabriel’s care while at Children’s Hospital. There has been particular interest in a meeting that took place earlier today involving the child’s family and members of his medical care team at Children’s Hospital.

In critical care situations like Gabriel’s, it is not uncommon to reach a place in the child’s treatment where discussions are held to see how best to proceed. When this situation occurs, input both from the family and from the child’s medical team is solicited. That is what was being addressed today, because the best interests of the child and family are always at the forefront of everything we do. Specifics of the discussion are a private matter, and the hospital is not at liberty to discuss the proceedings.

We have and will continue to provide the highest quality of care for Gabriel and every child at Children’s Hospital. No care has been withheld from Gabriel, and our medical team continues to work with the family to look at any possibilities that can be identified for his continued treatment.

[Gondring]

If true, this illustrates the danger of putting the life or death decision in the hands of people other than the patient.

[wagglebee]

Kristi Yamaguchi and Mia Hamm were also born with club feet.

[tnlibertarian]

I agree with you.

[TaxRelief]

They can discourage transfer, but how can they stop it? We’re not on socialized medicine, yet.

[swain_forkbeard]

Then why did you go there?

[Victor]

WTF...? OK, these sort of things might happen if BamaCare happens...but why now?