Braindead teen released to her mother. WTF?

[BrightEyes1082]

So, you may have heard by now that last month, a 13 year old girl in the bay area of
California had a tonsillectomy. It was not routine. She was obese and had diabetes and
sleep apnea. The tonsillectomy, along with removal of adenoids and other tissues, were
to treat her sleep apnea.

With me so far? Good.

She wakes up from her surgery and seems fine. She asks for a popsicle. All normal, right?
Mom is with her, her grandma, who is a surgical nurse, is with her. Other family members
are with her. Suddenly she starts bleeding from the mouth and nose, goes into cardiac
arrest, and is pronounced brain dead. There are reports that her family let her talk and
laugh instead of writing on the whiteboard to communicate. There are other reports that
they fed her a cheeseburger when she woke up from surgery. The hospital can't confirm
anything because they are gagged by HIPAA laws.

The family wants her kept on life support. Numerous doctors have declared her braindead.
A judge does nothing other than issue orders for them to work their shit out. Finally he
says she can be removed on Tuesday, Jan 7. Today, the girl's body was released by the
hospital to the county coroner. The coroner released her body to her mother. She's still
on the ventilator. The attorney who has fought for them, along with the family itself, all
still believe she is alive and will recover from her plight.

Now, before you comment here, I recommend you read the full story, because mine is
simply a watered down, cynical version.

What do you think? Is this family delusional? At first I was sympathetic, thinking they
just needed some time to say goodbye. But then the media circus got out of control,
and they bashed the hell out of the hospital while simultaneously refusing to let the
hospital speak on the matter.

I'm curious - how many doctors need to say she's dead before they'll believe it? They
are currently ventilating and feeding a corpse in hopes she will come back to life.

 

[bri908]

this whole thing brings back something I'll NEVER forget - in august 2001 - my Father went in for a same day procedure and came home 3 months later after major surgery for a traumatic brain injury and a stroke - people take for granted that no harm will come our way under a doctors care. sadly, there is little to no hope for this poor child outside of a miracle . once the brain is damaged to this extent, its just a matter of time, before the body surrenders. I can only hope they understand that it's just a matter of time and the best they can do , is make her comfortable and let her pass away with dignity.

I'm not a parent, but my best friend and his wife have been caring for their terminally ill daughter for 8 years - this angel was only supposed to live one year and here, she just celebrated her 8th birthday - she is on at home life support and has been doing remarkably well , the past few years - it used to be at least a half dozen icu visits yearly - but- caring for her at home has somewhat stabilized the situation and though she is unable to speak, walk, write, breathe and eat on her own, she is aware of those around her, but in time her illness will take that away too - they know, every day could be her last- but- they do all they can to make her comfy and happy , knowing this

it's never easy being in a situation like this -then you have people like my Father who should have never recovered, though he has pre alzheimers dementia as a result - he can walk, talk, dress, bathe and feed himself- things he was never supposed to be able to do again - but - with help from a devoted son like me - he made progress that left his dr's frazzled

the brain and the body are funny, amazing and powerful - you never know what they have up their sleeve -

but, from the way it sounds with this young girl -it's just a matter of time and the media should just back off , stop putting their useless, trouble making spin on it and give them their privacy

 

[bri908]

this whole situation is a slippery slope driven by many variables - beliefs, values, morals, denial, false hope,guilt - but - in the end- it's all up to this young girls body - I just hope the family is aware that she can pass at any time - or- with a miracle, she can have some sort of recovery or even a miracle- again, it's all up to her body and how much it can take

 

[Libertine]

Undoubtedly because I am vile and beyond redemption, the more I read about this case, the more I keep thinking of Monty Python's Parrot Sketch.

www.youtube.com/ watch?v=npjOSLCR2hE and remove the space before 'watch'.

An elderly aunt of mine who had a pacemaker died in her sleep of a stroke, as the autopsy later ascertained. Her home help called an ambulance when she found her next morning. The old woman's heart was still beating, albeit irregularly, solely because of the electrical stimulus.

 

[BrightEyes1082]

No, the thing is, she can't recover. She's dead. There's no more miracle(s). There's no making her
comfortable. She's gone, and cannot feel external stimuli. Her crazy family has stolen her dignity
and sold it to the media for about $48,000.

 

[Tickleslave83]

Once you are brain dead you are dead. If you can't think or respond to stimuli you are basically a corpse with a pulse. That may sound harsh but people shouldn't delude themselves that a person who has been declared brain dead is coming back. If I'm ever in that state I hope they pull the plug on me immediately.

 

[milagros317]

Yes, the family is delusional if they think that she will recover and speak to them again. Brain dead is brain dead.

But if their goal is to generate publicity for a billion dollar lawsuit against the hospital, then they are behaving quite rationally.

 

[bri908]

No, the thing is, she can't recover. She's dead. There's no more miracle(s). There's no making her
comfortable. She's gone, and cannot feel external stimuli. Her crazy family has stolen her dignity
and sold it to the media for about $48,000.

----------------------------

true, my last paragraph sums it up.....................................................

 

[paracarl44]

To keep her alive is going to cost a lot of money. Who is footing this bill?