Legacy MattersThose of us who are worried about the rush to euthanize now have the case of Mae Magouirk to show us how right we were to worry.
Another woman, 81, lies in a hospice without food or water since March 28. Another family dispute - this time between Mae's granddaughter and Mae's brother and sister. Brother and sister want a temporary feeding tube inserted and Mae evaluated for treatment at the University of Alabama Medical Center. Granddaughter, Gaddy, has been appointed emergency guardian and has stated.
"Grandmama is old and I think it is time she went home to Jesus. She has glaucoma and now this heart problem, and who would want to live with disabilities like these?
At a follow-up hearing in Troup County Probate Court, a settlement has been reached that allows awards guardianship to the granddaughter Gaddy provided three cardiologists evaluate the patient who would receive whatever treatment two of the three recommended.
Mae has a living will that states nourishment is to be withheld only if she were in a coma or vegetative state with no hope of recovery. Apparently, she did not have a health care proxy
Is this woman is being denied food and water even as the evaluation is going on? I don't know. Her granddaughter testified according to the local paper linked above that she feeds her grandmother Jello and chips of ice.
Is this case part of the hurry up and die syndrome? I don't know but I will follow it. I'm afraid we'll see many more of these cases, some genuinely a dispute over what the patient wanted, others with far more base motives. I don't think "quality of life" is the standard. None of us know with appreciation we can live even if from the outside the "quality" seems poor or what we would endure for just a little more life. I am reminded of the Zen strawberry story
One day while walking through the wilderness a man stumbled upon a vicious tiger. He ran but soon came to the edge of a high cliff. Desperate to save himself, he climbed down a vine and dangled over the fatal precipice. As he hung there, two mice appeared from a hole in the cliff and began gnawing on the vine. Suddenly, he noticed on the vine a plump wild strawberry. He plucked it and popped it in his mouth. It was incredibly delicious!
Wizbang has a number of links and continually updates Mae's story.
Hyscience has a long and excellent post that asks whether hospices are enabling euthanasia.
UPDATE: On Friday, the three doctors determined that Mae's heart condition was treatable. She
was airlifted to the University of Alabama Medical Center. Her nephew Kenneth Mullinax of Birmingham is quoted as saying, "Hospice is only for the dying and my aunt has many more years to live. A crime was being committed by having a person in a hospice who was not terminally ill. I hope that this never ever happens again."
The questions that remain are
1. Why was she in a hospice?
2. Why did her doctor order her feeding tube removed?
3. Why did neither her doctor or her granddaughter abide by the conditions listed in Mae's living will?