Just wanting to get some different views on the Terri Schaivo case in Florida. Could you be the nurse that pulls the feeding tube? Just curious from a nurses perspective
I would hope someone would pull my tube when the time came. I have to agree with the prevailing experts on this one - PVS. I certainly wouldn't want to live like that. It's not a meaningful life. I have told my husband about my wishes. If I can't make others aware of my 'presence', than it's not meaningful for me.
This case is pretty complicated. I have heard a couple nurses on my floor state, "let the parents have her daughter" but my stand is What kind of life is it to be paraded all over the news, contracted and be total care? The question is, what were her wishes? This is why it is so important to make sure our patient's know the value of having an advance directive and/or living will. Are we keeping her alive for her parents' sake or for Terri's? And would we be killing her in "cold blood" as her father states? Funny how families can overexaggerate to get media attention.
I could never pull the feeding tube in a case like this. It is obvious from video footage that Ms. Schiavo is not in a vegetative state. It is very unclear to me why the husband brings this up now. Who authorized the placement of the feeding tube in the first place if her wishes were well known at that time, as he says? I agree that this is not a life I would want for myself. Still, it is not for healthcare workers to decide what kinds of lives are worth living. I fail to see how just the fact that she is alive harms anyone. She does not appear to be in pain. Nurses who care for her have testified that she responds to voices, smiles, etc. Certainly a case could be made to forgo very aggressive care should she become gravely ill. I see no evidence of that right now.
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