Say Anything Blog

Dave, consider this: If you’re a doctor in this situation you are charged with both the legality of patient rights, the legal responsibilty to render care and the fluid legal status of who has the legal right to deny further treatment, all while being under the umbrella of being sued. All of that also extends to the hospital and the nurses as well.

Ethical elements aside, it’s a tricky legal decision. The patient’s rights not witstanding, one pissed off family member after the guy is dead and they can suddenly get sued from the family in a wrongful death suit. That suit even if it’s deemed without merit can cost a load.

So while you may want to decry morons and religion as the evil at play, I think you missed the mark. The real issue is that our legal system has allowed judgements to get so far out of hand that the medically ethical decision is subordinated because of legal fears. In earlier days, people trusted doctors decisons a little bit more but now too many people are trying to play the jurisprudence lotto.

As a total aside, I live in Texas and practice religion and all it took was 20 minutes to get a living will and a conditional DNR. Everyone, at the age 18, is free to square that away and it would have eliminated all the arguement for those two. So before you get too upset with us damnable theocrats in the Lone Star state, there is a perfectly acceptable legal device there for anyone that plans for their family’s future.