Further comments on cases involving minors? You might also be interested in a documentary called A Lion in the House filmed at Cincinnati Children's Hospital and Medical Center. I'll get the video for you if you ask me: there is a 1 hour version and a 4 hour version. * * * FYI: this is also pretty hard to watch * * *
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/lioninthehouse/02_index.htm
http://www.lioninthehouse.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6_EXFbSjbg
further comments on minors... well lets see. I think for one thing its a very complex issue because on one hand i think everyone should have a say in whether or not they want a treatment or what not. on the other hand, i think the parents have the final say. the parents have the years of experience over the minor but their judgement could be clouded due to intense pain, grief etc. I'd like for things to be in the hands of the individual but also believe the parents have a say. Its really hard to say that the minor shouldn't have a say in their own treatment.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is a very complicated situation its the kids body though the kid knows his/her body better than the parents they can actually measure the amount of pain he is in, but in the end the parents do have the say so.
DeleteAbout the minor issue: I believe the answer pertaining to the case we discussed in class is pretty straight forward. The ultimate answer (in my mind) is that if the patient is 11 oe 12, the parents have the final say. Its a shame that they wouldn't listen to the wants of their child. With the relationship between mind and body, if the child's whole heart isn't in to fighting the cancer, successful treatment would probably not be possible. Even though the child may be mature for his/her age, they are still very young to make that life/death choice. I think the entire discussion gets much more cloudy if the patient is 15 or 16 years of age. With the recognized legal age just a couple years away.... that makes the discussion much more complicated.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. I think collectively the parents and the child needs to make a decision together. But in the end if they cannot reach a common ground, the parents need to have the final decision.
DeleteI also agree.... As much as I want to that the child should have the final say, he is only 12 and going along with what Mr. Burns said, a 12 year old probably doesn't have the maturity to make a life and death situation.
DeleteI also agree, for any minor their parents in the end should have the final say. Also, it is sad if they wouldn't listen to the needs of their child because their judgement is being clouded by what they want. I think that if they could, the parents and child should talk to a third party that is not close or related to the family so then maybe the parents will realize that they want what is best for their child because it is not the parents living with the disease, cancer, etc. it is the child.
DeleteRegarding minors, it is usually pretty clear that the parents/guardian takes precedence. In Jimmy T's case (Great rapper name by the way), the line is a little blurred. The boy is suffering and it is clear he is ready to move on. If he was scared of death, and wanting treatment, by god help him. But here he is tired of suffering.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, no one has a moral code that includes this, you have to really sit down and think. In the instance that letting the boy die is the right thing to do, the parents will never allow that. If it is the wrong thing to do, you have to force a little boy to suffer when he is begging for it to stop.
Ofcourse anyone suffering enough will do anything to end it.
I think of the poisonous rockfish. It is a potent, non-lethal poison. It's poison causes an immense pain lasting around half an hour. The official protocol is to restrain the victim until it passes and do not listen to their requests as they almost inevitably beg for amputation of the affected limb.
Medically speaking, I think there are many factors: state of mind of child, state of mind of parent(s), disease/medical conflict at hand, and more. Issues as a minor have personally influenced me through my life so I find this issue complexing. When I started college, I was 16 and I was very restrained. In class, other students would sign waivers and hand them back in, but I could not sign forms for anything by myself because I had to have a parent also sign. I also could not vote, though I was in college.
ReplyDeleteSo I feel that certain minors will have better judgement than others and so it truly depends on the situation, whether medical choices or choices of rights.
No matter what a child says or wants in the end the final decision is made between the doctor and parents because of legal matters. I would hope in a situation like this though if the parents truly loved their child they would do what the child wanted to do.
ReplyDeleteI agree, based on legality the decision is the parents decision, even though this child may be more mature than the average 11 year old based on what he has been through so far. It is a tragedy that the parents would let the child suffer and become a vegetable pretty much, and not let the child achieve the ultimate for a religious believer. In this case, the child seems to be pretty understanding of what is going on and seems to be in a pretty stable mindset, so I feel that the doctor and the parents should definitely consider the child's wishes.
DeleteJust commenting on cases involving minors in general, I agree with what many of you have said as well. Even though from a legal standpoint the decision is to be made by the doctors and parents, it is important to consider the child's wants and wishes. Since they are the ones having to deal with the disease/treatment their opinion is important to take into account, but to also be taking with a grain of salt since children are just that, children, and usually don't have a reasoning level of an adult. Again though, that is no reason to not allow them in on the choices being made.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what most of you are saying here. Legally it is the parent's choice to decide the treatment of the child. However, I think that the parents should have a serious discussion with the child about the situation. As many of you have said, things are a little more complicated when the child is 11 or 12 as apposed to 15 and older. If the child is that young then they might not be mature enough to make a big decision like that. On the other hand, only the child knows how he/she feels, the parents are not experiencing what the child is so how can they make their child's life decisions? I personally think that if the situation is happening to the child, the child should be able to have a some say in the decision making with the parents
ReplyDelete