I have been contacted by Jerri Ward, the attorney for Andrea Clark’s family. She has informed me that a new physician has agreed to treat Clark and that the doctor and the family want her life-sustaining treatment to continue while they look for another hospital to provide care under the . . . . Continue Reading »
Andrea Clark’s sister was assured (she says) by St. Luke’s that Andrea would be maintained through Tuesday. But Jerri Ward, the attorney for the family, just e-mailed me: “I have not been able to get St. Luke’s to agree on the record that care will be continued after the . . . . Continue Reading »
Andrea Clark’s becoming the “unwanted patient” began with Houston hospitals creating a collaborative policy on medical futility back in the 1990s. That led to the Texas law which sought (impotently, in my view) to limit the damage that can be caused by medical futility.Here is a . . . . Continue Reading »
I heard from Lanore Dixon, Andrea Clark’s sister. Here is what I was told. She asked me to pass it on:“St. Luke’s has agreed not to pull Andrea’s life support at least until Tuesday. On Tuesday, a committee of doctors from St. Luke’s will meet to discuss how to proceed . . . . Continue Reading »
The deal to permit Andrea Clark to receive treatment in Illinois is off. The hospital there wasn’t a hospital, it was a nursing home, and so St. Luke’s cancelled the transfer. I am told, but don’t know, that this was because of a miscommunication about the seriousness of her . . . . Continue Reading »
The numbers of euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands continue to increase, and those are just those reported. Several studies have shown that about half of all euthanasia deaths in the Netherlands are not reported, even though it is legal there for doctors to euthanize patients who ask for it. Not . . . . Continue Reading »
The denouement of the Andrea Clark case—a desperately ill woman forced to move 1000 miles just to receive the care she wants to stay alive—has been insufficiently covered by Texas media, although this is pretty good story. The people of Texas have a big problem with their futile care . . . . Continue Reading »
I have just been advised that Andrea Clark’s family has accepted the offer to move her to Illinois. It is ridiculous that Clarke has to be moved at all, but at least she will get the treatment she wants and needs to sustain her life. Under the Texas statute, St. Luke’s is not responsible . . . . Continue Reading »
James Kelly is a man with a spinal cord injury who has taught himself almost all there is to know about stem cell science. He began as a supporter of ESCR and therapeutic cloning, but has since changed his mind.In this piece he describes a chilling episode in which he claims he was literally muzzled . . . . Continue Reading »
The latest twist in the Andrea Clarke futile care case is the hospital’s pressure. From my article today on NRO: “Illustrating the level of hardball some hospitals play against patients and families, the Clarke family’s lawyer Jerri Ward told me that St. Luke’s agreed to pay . . . . Continue Reading »
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