<p>If the mother takes her home, what prevents her from showing back up at the ER of this or any other hospital asking for resuscitation efforts? </p>
<p>My sympathy for this family is wearing down, and my sympathy for the hospital is increasing dramatically. Religiosity doesn’t mean you get to dictate how professionals do their jobs. Of course they can’t find any surgeon willing to implant tubes. No competent one will. </p>
<p>No one seems to be willing to say the obvious – these are low-information people.</p>
<p>And if the mom signs for complete responsibility for Jahi, and something happens, well, if they called an ambulance to get her back to the ER, one wonders if the ambulance would transport her if there is a several week old death certificate on file. Sevmom addressed a similar scenario yesterday afternoon/evening (post 862).</p>
<p>In reading about this I ran across a very long series of comments in a forum called “websleuths.com”. Its a forum so I don’t think I can link it, but they are on thread # 4 (looks like the admin there closes it when it gets too long and opens a new one). The threads are titled " Family wants to keep life support for girl brain dead after tonsil surgery" (its now #4). Lots of good info and direct links to court documents. They are now discussing the attorney’s specific choice (in his blog) of the word “extricate” to get her out of the hospital, and the implications that word choice has. He said
<p>And, most distressing (to me) is the fact that there is not a uniform agreement in all states of brain death, and that she could theoretically be transported to a state where she is not considered legally dead! [Why</a> States Should Adopt UDDA](<a href=“- Uniform Law Commission”>- Uniform Law Commission) What a potential mess.</p>
<p>I wonder to what extent the fact that the death happened in the hospital after the surgery contributed to the family’s inability to accept it. Would the same scenario have transpired if the young lady had been in a car accident and died en route or shortly after arrival? Would the family have been more able to process “**** happens”?</p>
<p>In one of the documents referred to in that thread, it makes note of how the hospital has extended far more grace and latitude to this family than the “typical 2-3 days” that they extend in other similar pediatric brain death cases. The medical teams have explained to the family repeatedly what brain dead means and extensive chaplain and social support has been provided to the family and Jahi’s siblings.</p>
<p>Read all the documents - they are in the thread. The latest from Dolan is particularly appalling - it sets forth the facts as “she went in, had complications, and is now on life support, and now the mean hospital threatens to take that life support away.” Never a mention of the 3 neurologists (2 from the hospital and the 1 court appointed) who examined her and found her dead and whose reports are all in the file.</p>
<p>Someone commented as well that they were pleased her mom was able to keep her siblings (three I think?) out of the limelight, but wondered what the siblings would be dealing with (nightmares, possible PTSD as they see their sister, if they have been permitted to, etc). I can’t find it now, however.</p>
<p>*** Some discussion of the 3 additional children is in thread # 4, pg 1</p>
<p>Well, wouldn’t it be like any other time someone shows up deceased at the ER? The admitting doctor would say “there’s nothing we can do…this person is dead.”</p>
<p>There is no shortage of high-profile cases where the eventual verdict seems completely out of touch with reality to trial watchers who have followed every aspect of the case in this kind of detail. I don’t know why this one is bothering me so much and I wish it wasn’t.</p>
<p>“Well, wouldn’t it be like any other time someone shows up deceased at the ER? The admitting doctor would say “there’s nothing we can do…this person is dead.””</p>
<p>Exactly … That’s my point. And the family would have to accept it.</p>
<p>The Finley Boyle case seems totally different. The family has taken her home in hospice care and has accepted the inevitable and are not insisting on futile treatment. Their lawsuit is against the dentist. So sad for this family.</p>
<p>That’s not all that shocking, really. Dentists cost money and many adults don’t go. It’s not fun. Some people hate the dentist and won’t go until it’s an emergency. My kids have been at the dentist when another child was found to have 7 cavities at age 5 or 6. They suck on juice all day and until it hurts no-one notices.
Not unusual, sadly.</p>
<p>actingmt, I guess you are right. I have known people (educated, financially secure) who let their kids fall asleep with a sippy cup of juice or milk (and thus don’t brush their teeth before bedtime). I still find it astonishing.</p>