Terry Schiavo

[1EMT-P]

This is a very complicated issue, first you have Terry's husband saying that Terry would not want to be kept alive this way and then you have her parents and siblings saying that Terry responds to them and that they are willing to care for her.

Based on what I have read and saw so far it does not appear that Terry is in a coma, she appears to be a living, breathing human being. I don't agree with removing the feeding tube and withholding fluids from Terry. I think that they should have left the tube in and moved her to a either a rehab facility or to a long term care facility.

Terry is not terminally ill why is she in a hospice in the first place? Why don't her Dr's order some tests EEG, MRI & PET Scan to see just how her brain is functioning and just how bad her brain injury really is?

[THE_DITCH_DOCTOR]

They have done all of those things (at least according to the news reports I have seen). It's just the parents deny that the results are valid because they don't support their point of view.

By the way, she's not comatose, she's in a permanent vegetative state. She's reflexively responsive but not in an conscious or directed sort of way. If she were comatose she would be totally unresponsive (by the technical definition of a coma).

[1EMT-P]

One of the MD's on TV said that Terry was higher functioning than some of the kids you see with CP. He said that she was not in a coma and did not have PVS, but that she suffered from a brain injury.

I also read a report that said that the Dr's had not done an MRI on Terry, that all they had done was CT scans which are not as good as MRI's. I would like for them to release the medical records so we could see what has and hasn't been done in this case.

[THE_DITCH_DOCTOR]

Of course, neither MRI's or CT's are useful in hypoxic brain injury (at least not this far down the road). This is according to couple of radiology texts I consulted and one of the radiologists at our local hospital. The only thing of use would be a PET scan or an EEG both of which have been done as part of the court ordered evaluation.

And remember you can find a doctor who is willing to say just about anything either for money or for the publicity. That's why I don't listen to the doctors for either side, only to the court appointed neurologists who aren't being paid to defend either side.

[emtmoira]

We actaully discussed this case in my Christian Healthcare Ethics class last semester so with it in the news I feel very informed in saying that congress had no right in deciding life or death for critically ill people. I think that Terry should be allowed to die, I'm not for killing people but I think that in this case it's inhumane to let her "live" like this. It makes me as a 21 year old want to write out a living will even though I've told friends and family my wishes how do I know that this wouldn't happen to me. Although I applaud the advances in medicine I think there's a point where it goes too far and we rely on it to "save" people that maybe weren't meant to be saved. I know this may sound wrong with me being in healthcare but I think that we want to extend people's lives so much that we can't accept that sometimes death needs to happen. It scares me that this decision has gone to congress and the supreme court because it's just another step towards our lives being completely controlled including how and when we die. As much as I don't like seeing people die I think that it's her time, and that in fact her time was long ago.

[chipmunkemt_98]

Thought I would give you something else to ponder on. Here is a bit of information in analyzing this case on a legal aspect which I found on an ABC website:

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Schiavo/story...0336&page=1

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Schiavo/story...0336&page=2

(This is from page 2)

"In November 1992, almost three years after Terri was stricken, Michael sued the doctor who treated her. He was awarded $1 million — $700,000 of which was earmarked for her care. " (Hmm...with her gone he would have a little money, ehh?)

"Michael, now 41, lives with Jodi Centonze, a 40-year-old resident of the Clearwater, Fla., area. According to reports, she occasionally accompanies Michael when he visits Terri.

Michael and Centonze have two children together, a fact that the Schindlers have cited as proof of Michael's lack of devotion to his wife, a charge that Michael angrily denies. " (Someone to spend the money on?)

Why doesn't the guy just divorce her and go on? Could it be the money?

[THE_DITCH_DOCTOR]

I hope she passes away quickly for her sake, her family's sake, and all of ours sakes. This argument has gone on far too long simply for political gain by people pandering to the uneducated and/or excessively religious masses. May all the politicians and others who have used this poor woman for their own sick, corrupt and perverted reasons find a toasty spot in Hell for all eternity.

[MedFire]

May all the politicians and others who have used this poor woman for their own sick, corrupt and perverted reasons find a toasty spot in Hell for all eternity.

Im glad someone said it. I agree with u.

[Ztenec]

"In November 1992, almost three years after Terri was stricken, Michael sued the doctor who treated her. He was awarded $1 million — $700,000 of which was earmarked for her care. " (Hmm...with her gone he would have a little money, ehh?)

Now make yourself useful and find out how much has been spent on her care. I bet you 15 years of being looked after doesn't leave much if any.

Let just say it costs $10 an hour in expenses (personell, equipment, etc) to have her be there not including all the tests etc. $10x24hrsx365days= $87600/year, x 15 years = 1,314,000. Of course then you could say what if she had insurance etc so we will never know. Just my point that 1million doesnt go far over 15 years of medical expenses we of all people should know that.

[ed2brute]

Now make yourself useful and find out how much has been spent on her care. I bet you 15 years of being looked after doesn't leave much if any.

Let just say it costs $10 an hour in expenses (personell, equipment, etc) to have her be there not including all the tests etc. $10x24hrsx365days= $87600/year, x 15 years = 1,314,000. Of course then you could say what if she had insurance etc so we will never know. Just my point that 1million doesnt go far over 15 years of medical expenses we of all people should know that.

Plus I believe some ~$400,000 has been spent on legal fees. He's not going to collect much after this is all said and done.

Anyway, does anyone believe this is really about Terri anymore? Terri's gone...all that's left is the shell she once inhabited. This is about those she left behind.