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Reference: Ethical Dilemma regarding Carrie’s Case.
Following a grisly motor accident on, Mrs. Carrie Matheson was admitted in our hospital under the reference number 67/9569/15. She has been in a vegetative state for a month now and she is proving unresponsive to medication. Based on the prevailing statistical data, the chances of her recovery are very slim (less than 1%). However, there is a looming ethical dilemma regarding her condition. Her parents believe that she can recover if aggressive medical care continues. Their argument is that the miracles that are beyond the comprehension of science do happen. On the other hand, her husband, Mr. Bob Matheson claims that she should be put off life support because it is against her wishes. She does not have a living will or an identified medical power of attorney.
As members of the Ethics committee it is our recommendation that Mrs. Matheson be taken off life support for the following reasons. The chances of her recovery from the vegetative state, even in the most sophisticated facilities, are very slim. Any prolonged care will lead to more medical expenses for the family. Based on her husband’s stance, it seems they had already talked about the best step to take in the event something like this happened. It is only fair to grant her wishes. Finally, the patient is suffering and our actions of trying to force her to endure it are wrong. Without the machines she would not be suffering.
The ethical problem in this case is that the act of giving and taking life is not upon the hands of human beings. Technically, she is still alive because her heart beats. It should be known that getting her out of the life support system is practically the same as taking away her life. On the contrary, it is the patient’s wish that she does not spend a single day on life support. Putting her life support is against her wishes and unfair at the same time.
Issues such as this one have become more common nowadays; with a good example being that of a lady named Terri Schiavo, who died after a decade of tube feeding (Cooper, 2012). In Schiavo’s case, the matter was complicated by a legal tussle between the husband and her own her parents. Similar to this case, her husband wanted her off the life support machine while the parents opposed. She died before the courts could make a ruling. The issue of life support, is still a subject of debate that is far from over. Different groups of people hold different opinions regarding the matter.
The alternative option is to go against her wishes and put her on life support until she recovers or becomes cardiac dead. This option will require the consent of her family members despite their differing opinions. The likely aftermath of this decision is that it will cause emotional torture on the family. However, the ethics committee strongly recommends that the life support machine be switched off.
To implement this decision, we will educate the family on a few issues. Top on the list would be to make them understand that Carrie’s heart is only beating because of the mechanical support afforded by the machines. Without the machines, She would be cardiac dead as well. We will also inform the family that her life is only prolonged by the machines and chances of recovery are very slim.
Regards,
The Ethics Committee
Reference
Cooper, R.J., (2012). Making the case for ethical decision- making models. Nurse prescribing; 10 (12); 607- 611