Gordon Cheng
a child on sydney harbour
# 8895
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Posted
I've not made myself clear. My concern is not based on Terri Schiavo and Donald Herbert having had the same medical problem; they don't. Although there are similarities.
Actually, just on apples and oranges, you can compare them. They are not the same, but an apple has more in common with an orange than with Donald Herbert. The ethical issues relating to ending the life of fruit are considerably less complex than the issues relating to the life of humans. Saying that Schiavo and Herbert can't be compared begs all sorts of questions.
The concern for me would be that hostile family members can in cases like this (long term coma) find expert medical opinion who will back the view that life support may legitimately be withdrawn, or that more active measures may be taken.
The father of a friend had a stroke two days ago, but is now (at the time of writing) conscious. This was bad enough, but what was genuinely alarming were the two doctor friends who suggested to my friend that now was the right time for an overdose of painkillers. This was after the father had recovered consciousness! When it comes to ethical questions, patients near death do have some commonalities; one of them is the alarming number of people who stand ready to pull the plug on them.
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Posts: 4392 | From: Sydney, Australia | Registered: Dec 2004
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