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NRL News The
Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation It doesn't get much more direct than that, but desperate times call for desperate pleas. Every day the Terri Schindler Schiavo Foundation receives calls from people whose loved ones are in danger of being killed because their lives don't measure up to the arbitrary standards set by hospital "ethics" committees. And we at the Foundation know the heartache and the desperation and the fear that stalks families when loved ones are imperiled. Terri died after 14 days without food or fluids, a legal travesty that the foundation is trying to prevent from becoming a routine injustice in hospitals and nursing homes around the nation. This isn't a "what if" scenario. It is a grim reality that is being played out in the United States of America--probably even in your own backyard. Let me offer just a few examples. Andrea Clark, for example, was 54 and hospitalized with a heart condition. She was on a ventilator but could communicate and was insistent that she wanted to live. Her sisters contacted us, desperate to find a doctor and hospital willing to treat her. The hospital in Houston had decided that Andrea's case was "futile." It didn't matter than Andrea wanted to live, it didn't matter that Andrea's family wanted her to live, and it didn't even matter than Andrea was fully insured. Mrs. Vo is 63, a Vietnamese immigrant, married to a man who courageously stood up to the Communist regime in his native land, and is now a citizen of the United States. She was diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state. Her husband loves her and wishes to care for her--her daughter is an emergency room physician who also wants nothing more than to care for her mother as long as she lives. But a hospital ethics committee thinks it knows better than Mrs. Vo's loved ones. Her case was declared futile and her family was given 10 days to find another facility to treat her before all lifesaving treatment would be cut off. Daniel is 10 months old--he has a brain injury, and a mommy who loves him. His case was declared futile by a hospital ethics committee. Daniel's doctor decided that he had "no hope for meaningful recovery" and made the decision to withdraw treatment. His mom was given 10 days to find another hospital willing to care for him. The list goes on, the stories vary, but one thing remains the same. In each of these cases, a courageous pro-life doctor or lawyer was or is the only thing standing between these people and a sure and certain death. Sometimes that death would be from asphyxiation, other times from dehydration and starvation, but without the courage of medical and legal professionals willing to advocate for them, these people would surely die. That is why we need you. Put simply, if you are a pro-life doctor or lawyer, we need to hear from you. We may need your opinion on a case, or we may need you and your hospital to accept on transfer a patient whose life is in immediate danger. We need your time, we need your talent, we need your courage, and we need your action, but most of all right now, we need your contact information! We are seeking pro-life medical, psychological, political, and legal professionals as well as caretakers in all 50 states, in any specialty or field. If you are one of these people, or know of a committed pro-life person who is, please contact us! The threat of involuntary euthanasia--the kind where people are killed against their will--is upon us. It isn't a theory, it is a practice. And it could target you or someone you love. Please help us save lives by helping us locate pro-life medical and legal professionals in your area. The time to act is now, and the lives you save could be your own, or those of people you love. Please send names and addresses of pro-life medical and legal professionals to the Terri's Legacy Project, 11228 S. Balsam Ave., Solon Springs, WI 54873 or e-mail them to joleigh@centurytel.net. For more information on the project, contact us at (715) 378-4302. |