The Terri Schiavo Controversy

The Terri Schiavo Controversy Burle1 Theresa Marie Schindler, the oldest of three children, was born on December 3, 1963 to Robert and Mary Schindler. She met her husband Michael Schiavo after moving to Florida and they were married on November 10, 1984. Terri was 21 years old and had her whole life ahead of her. Little did she know that life as she knew it would soon change. Terri's life did change in a dramatic way on February 25, 1990, when she collapsed from a heart attack in her home and slipped into a two-month long coma. The cause of her heart attack is believed to have been because of a potassium deficiency. There has never been a clear and concise answer as to why the heart attack occurred. However, it has been thought to be due to the possibility that Terri was bulimic. During the heart attack, Terri's brain was oxygen deprived which caused damage to her brain. Terri had been under a physicians care since her collapse. She then entered what is termed a persistent vegetative state (PVS). She was placed on a feeding tube as she was not able to eat any food by mouth or able to swallow. Terri's husband had been fighting for years to have Terri removed from the feeding tube. Terri's parents Robert and Mary Schindler had been fighting equally as hard to keep Terri alive. Michael Schiavo had argued that Terri would not have wanted to live in such a condition, and that she had expressed these feelings to him before her collapse (Bay1). It is just recently that the whole dilemma of Terri's fate has come into the view of the public eye with so much scrutiny. The two families took the issue to court and after years of battling over Terri's fate, the court ruled in Michael Schiavo's favor. The decision to remove the feeding tube was made on March 18, 2005, by Judge George Greer. In essence, Terri was starved and dehydrated, as a form of euthanasia. Terri Schiavo was never in a persistent vegetative state and never should have been euthanized..

The use of euthanasia may not have been appropriate in Terri Schiavo's case. Is it appropriate to dehydrate and starve to death an otherwise stable patient? Terri was on no other type of life support other than a feeding tube. All of her bodily functions were stable, she responded to voices, and was capable of smiling, laughing, and crying (World Net 2). Videos of Terri that were shown on television show Terri performing all of aforementioned behaviors. Does this sound like someone who is unaware of his or her surroundings?

Some terms that need to be defined before moving further on in this paper are euthanasia and persistent vegetative state. The word euthanasia comes from the Greek meaning of "good death". It is the practice of killing a person or animal, in a painless or minimally painful way, for merciful reasons, usually to end suffering. Euthanasia is synonymous with the phrase 'mercy killing'. Euthanasia in the strict sense involves actively causing death (Britannica). According to the Medical College of Wisconsin, the term persistent vegetative state or PVS is defined as a condition in which in which individuals have lost cognitive neurological function and awareness of the environment but retain noncognitive function and a preserved sleep-wake cycle. It is sometimes described as when a person is technically alive, but his or her brain is dead. Although, that description is not completely accurate. In persistent vegetative state, the individual loses the higher cerebral powers of the brain. However, the functions of the brainstem, such as respiration and circulation remain relatively intact. Spontaneous movements may occur and the eyes may open in response to external stimuli, but the patient does not speak or obey commands. Patients in a vegetative state may appear somewhat normal. They may occasionally grimace, cry, or laugh (Healthlink1).

Once the patient is out of immediate danger, although still in a coma or vegetatative state, treatment will focus on the medical care team. Their concentration is on preventing infections, and maintenance of the patient's physical state as much as possible. This includes preventing bed sores, pneumonia, and maintaining balanced nutrition for the patient. Physical therapy may also be needed to keep the patient in good muscular health (Healthlink 1).

The Medical College of Wisconsin states, the prognosis of coma and PVS patients depends on location, severity, and amount of neurological damage that has occurred. Patients may come out of a coma with a multitude of problems that could include; physical, intellectual, and psychological difficulties that need prolonged care. Some patients do well, recover with full capacity, and go on with their lives. However, some will never go beyond regaining basic processes of the body (HealthLink1).

Physicians have differing opinions as to whether or not Terri was in a vegetative state. Some say undoubtedly that she was and some vehemently deny it. Dr. William Hammesfahr of the Neurological Institute in Clearwater, Florida said that after watching a video of Terri and examining limited medical records he concluded that she needed to be reevaluated by a team of experts. Hammesfahr stated, "There needs to be a careful evaluation, and it needs to be done by a new group. She appears to be aware of people in her environment. Her CT scans show that a brain exists, and videotape shows someone aware of her surroundings (Tampa Tribune 3)." However, Dr. Ronald Cranford says, "I've seen her, there's no doubt in my mind, whatsoever, she's in a permanent vegetative state. Her CAT scan shows extremely severe atrophy to the brain, and her EEG is flat. It doesn't show any electrical activity at all (WorldNet 1)." Hammesfahr commented on Terri's ability to be rehabilitated when he stated, "With proper therapy, she will have a tremendous improvement. I think, personally, that she will be able to walk, eventually, and she will be able to use as least one of her arms (WorldNet2)." Cranford responds, "There's no way, that's totally bogus (WorldNet2)." Hammesfahr states in another article, "It's time to help Terri instead of just warehousing her, she would have benefited from treatment years ago, but it is not too late to start now (News2)." Hammesfahr is not alone in his idea of Terri being rehabilitated. He and fourteen other medical professionals, which includes six neurologists, agreed that Terri was not in a persistent vegetative state and could be rehabilitated (News2). Terri had not received any type of treatment since 1991, so what would it have hurt to try some kind of therapy to see if would have worked. Dr. William Maxfield, who testified in court on Terri's behalf