Helga Wanglie Revisited: Medical Futility and the Limits of Autonomy

1993 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
David H. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Medical Treatment ◽  
Vegetative State ◽  
Persistent Vegetative State ◽  
Medical Futility ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Public Controversy ◽  
The World ◽  
Sentient Beings ◽  
To Receive

There is little to indicate from, her circumstances that events would propel Helga Wanglie, an 86-year-old Minneapolis woman, into the center of public controversy. We know little of her life prior to the events that removed her from the world of conscious, sentient beings. By the time of her death on 4 July 1991, Mrs. Wanglie had become the focus of a nationwide public and professional debate on the rights of a patient in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) to receive aggressive medical treatment when such treatment is felt by the patient's doctors not to be in the patient's best interests.

scholarly journals THE SO-CALLED “CYANIDE CASE” IN GEORGIAN MEDIA

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariam Adamashvili
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Public Controversy ◽  
Early Release ◽  
Sensitive Issue ◽  
The World ◽  
The Media ◽  
Ethical Norms ◽  
To Receive ◽  
The Church

Religion and related aspects are a very sensitive issue both in Georgia and in the world. Consequently, incorrect coverage of such issues may lead to the escalation of strong public controversy and conflicts. As the media is generally considered to be the best tool for shaping public opinion, the journalist must take into account ethical norms and relevant legislation in the process of covering these issues as well as be guided by internationally accepted standards of religious coverage. Digesting religious topics and preparing a media product on related issues have become especially persistent in Georgia in recent years, as the number of religious crises and conflicts has increased significantly. In this regard, our paper is dedicated to exploring one of the crucial events in Georgia: the so-called “Cyanide Case”. We will endeavor to reveal the angle from which the Georgian media covered the crisis. As unimaginable as it may seem, it was the manner of the request for the accused clergyman to receive the rite of communion, including the making of this request by atheist celebrities at the rally, that triggered the discrimination against the church. It is noteworthy that after calling for providing Giorgi Mamaladze with the communion, the attack on the church continued with another request to make a demand to His Holiness and Beatitude Illia II of Georgia to mediate with the President to grant a pardon to the Dean in parallel with the deteriorating health of the clergyman. In due time, they were forced to at least acknowledge the power of the Patriarch’s word. One could not easily forget one simple detail of Georgian law providing for the initiation of early release due to deteriorating health; though, the authors of this request needed to create the image of a persecuted person by the church through the arrested Dean.

DEHYDRATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS

2001 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-58
Author(s):  
John Keown
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Medical Treatment ◽  
Vegetative State ◽  
Persistent Vegetative State ◽  
House Of Lords ◽  
The Law ◽  
Controversial Aspect

IN NHS Trust v. Bland [1993] A.C. 789 the House of Lords held it lawful for a doctor to withdraw tube-delivered food and fluids from his patient in persistent vegetative state (pvs) even though this would cause death by dehydration. The most controversial aspect of the case was the further ruling by three of their Lordships that it was lawful even though the doctor’s purpose was not merely to withdraw what he regarded as a futile “medical treatment” but was precisely to kill the patient. As one of their Lordships, Lord Mustill, rightly recognised (even though he thought withdrawal ethically justifiable), this ruling left the law “morally and intellectually misshapen”, prohibiting intentional killing by an act but permitting intentional killing by omission.

scholarly journals Exploring Nurses' Attitudes About the Value of a Hospital Based Medical Futility Policy

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christie Bowser
Keyword(s):  
End Of Life ◽  
End Of Life Care ◽  
Moral Distress ◽  
Vegetative State ◽  
Persistent Vegetative State ◽  
Medical Futility ◽  
Difficult Case ◽  
Life Care ◽  
Expected Outcome ◽  
Difficult Cases

<p>Nurses are responsible for providing care for patients and following through with a physician’s orders, however, it is not always easy to do. Certain cases are more difficult than others, especially those involving end-of-life care versus continuing with life-sustaining measures. It is not an easy decision for families or patients to make, but sometimes these life-sustaining interventions can do more harm than good, causing much distress among caregivers (Burns & Truog, 2007). Some cases have become hallmark cases like that of Terri Schiavo, a woman who was in a persistent vegetative state from 1990 to 2005 while her parents and husband fought between keeping her alive or letting her go peacefully (Quill, 2005). Another difficult case in 2007 involved a toddler, Emilio Gonzales, whose mother fought for more time with her child rather than removing the ventilator (Cohen, 2007).</p> <p>Defining futility and its role in healthcare has been an ongoing issue since the 1980s. For the purpose of this research paper, futility is defined as “treatment or clinical interventions that are not likely to result in benefit to the patient or produce the expected outcome” (Terra & Powell, 2012, p. 103). Nurses can suffer from moral distress when they are obligated to provide life-sustaining interventions to patients that have a small chance of benefiting from them. Nurses may experience less frustration and moral distress if hospitals implement a futility policy that provides guidance in these difficult cases. The purpose of this study is to explore nurses' attitudes regarding a hospital-based medical futility policy. </p>

16. Medical Futility

2019 ◽  
pp. 520-571
Author(s):  
G. T. Laurie ◽  
S. H. E. Harmon ◽  
E. S. Dove
Keyword(s):  
End Of Life ◽  
Vegetative State ◽  
Minimally Conscious State ◽  
Medical Futility ◽  
Conscious State ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
A Value ◽  
Permanent Vegetative State ◽  
Minimally Conscious

This chapter begins with a discussion of the concept of medical futility. It examines cases dealing with selective non-treatment of the newborn and selective non-treatment in infancy. The chapter argues that while concepts such as ‘futility’ and ‘best interests’ have strong normative appeal, the search for objectivity in their application may itself be a futile exercise. The reality is that decision-makers are involved in a value-laden process, and this is no less true when the decision is taken in a court rather than at the patient’s bedside. The chapter then considers the issue of end of life, examining cases of patients in a permanent vegetative state and those in a minimally conscious state.

scholarly journals Futility of Medical treatment

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albar Mohammed Ali ◽  
Chamsi Pasha Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Medical Futility ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
End Of Life Decisions ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Patient’S Autonomy ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Futile Treatment ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
To Receive

Medical and technological resources allow many patients affected by advanced diseases to receive more aggressive and expensive treatments than ever before. This wide range of available options can frequently lead to complex end-of-life decisions, such as when to start palliative care programs. Medical futility refers to interventions that are unlikely to produce any significant benefit for the patient. Medical futility is a daily problem, with significant ethical implications and concerns about the respect of the main ethics principles: beneficence, non-maleficence, patient’s autonomy, and justice. Proceeding with futile treatment is neither in the best interests of the patient nor of the healthcare system. This paper examines the definition of futility, applications of the concept of medical futility, the complexities of management when care is considered futile.International Journal of Human and Health Sciences Vol. 02 No. 01 Jan’18. Page : 13-17

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