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I’ve been hearing about this story locally. It’s beyond disturbing. As a physician, I cannot imagine how or why this physician substituted his/her judgement as to what constitutes “quality of life”. I cannot understand why the hospital system went along with this. 1/7https://twitter.com/stevenspohn/status/1277679775172214789 …
This is especially concerning during this pandemic when hospital systems have been internally discussing rationing of resources like ventilators as our ICUs face being overwhelmed with patients needing critical care. What I do know is this: 2/7
Medical ethicists struggle to address issues like quality of life and rationing of care all the time. We had medical ethics classes in medical school designed to help us weigh these concerns. 3/7
I was reminded of those classes recently when I saw my colleagues in NYC struggle to allocate resources to their patients in their overrun ERs and hospitals. I wondered how I would make those decisions should I be faced with them. 4/7
I cannot imagine being an American living with a disability or a family member in normal times, much less during a pandemic. We already devalue these American’s lives and create barriers to the type of support services that would improve their quality of life. 5/7
This pandemic has magnified these inequities, much as it has magnified the system wide inequities across our healthcare system. When the richest country in the world isn’t caring its most vulnerable, it’s a *choice*, not a lack of resources. 6/7
It’s an intentional decision to prioritize the profits of the rich and well connected over the well-being of our fellow Americans. We must remove the profit motive from our healthcare system. 7/7
if you get into Congress, I hope you will fight for people with disabilities. Our lawmakers need to understand quality of life is not null and void if you need a wheelchair, a breathing tube, or a G-tube.
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