I heard a report on NPR about conjoined twins, I believe in New York state, who have been hospitalized since birth. The twins have no hope to survive--they share a heart and other vital organs that can't be separated. The mother refuses to give the hospital a Do Not Resuscitate(DNR)order. So instead of keeping the babies comfortable to the end of their short lives, every time a problem arises, which is often, the hospital is obligated to go all out with tests and drugs--the whole megilla. The nurses are suffering stress from observing all the un-necessary pain the babies are being subjected to.

I don't know if the mother is just ignorant or bull headed or what her problem is, but this makes my blood boil. First, not only for what she is imposing on those helpless babies, but the expense being incurred keeping them alive. Do you have any idea how much that hospital bill will be? A million dollars? Probably more. And who's gonna pay for it?
YOU ARE. All taxpayers are. I bet that mother is on Medicaid and has no medical coverage to pay for it all. Surely this hospital has a board of ethics to weigh all options, with the mother's opinion included, to come to the best decision about the babies. I think the hospital is so afraid of being sued they won't stand up and do the right thing.

No wonder the medical delivery system in the United States is so *ucked up. Millions of dollars funneled into a drain of useless care, un-needed testing, and a "keep the patient alive at all costs" mentality, not just in this case, but all across the spectrum of medical care. Ask any nurse and they'll tell you what I say is true; we've seen it over and over.

susil