in a situation recalling the recent death
of terri schiavo in florida, an
81-year-old widow, denied nourishment and
fluids for nearly two weeks, is clinging
to life in a hospice in lagrange, ga.,
while her immediate family fights
desperately to save her life before she
dies of starvation and dehydration.
Mae magouirk was neither terminally ill,
comatose nor in a "vegetative state," when
hospice-lagrange accepted her as a patient
about two weeks ago upon the request of
her granddaughter, beth gaddy, 36, an
elementary school teacher.
Also upon gaddy's request and without
prior legal authority, since march 28
hospice-lagrange has denied magouirk
normal nourishment or fluids via a feeding
tube through her nose or fluids via an iv.
She has been kept sedated with morphine
and ativan, a powerful tranquillizer.
Her nephew, ken mullinax, told
worldnetdaily that although magouirk is
given morphine and ativan, she has not
received any medication to keep her eyes
lubricated during her forced dehydration.
"they haven't given her anything like that
for two weeks," said mullinax. "she can't
produce tears."
the dehydration is being done in defiance
of magouirk's specific wishes, which she
set down in a "living will," and without
agreement of her closest living
next-of-kin, two siblings and a nephew: a.
Byron mcleod, 64, of anniston, ga.; ruth
mullinax, 74, of birmingham, ala.; and
ruth mullinax's son, ken mullinax.
Magouirk's husband and only child, a son,
are both deceased.
In her living will, magouirk stated that
fluids and nourishment were to be withheld
only if she were either comatose or
"vegetative," and she is neither. Nor is
she terminally ill, which is generally a
requirement for admission to a hospice.
Magouirk lives alone in lagrange, though
because of glaucoma she relied on her
granddaughter, beth gaddy, to bring her
food and do errands.
Two weeks ago, magouirk's aorta had a
dissection, and she was hospitalized in
the local lagrange hospital. Her aortic
problem was determined to be severe, and
she was admitted to the intensive care
unit. At the time of her admission she
was lucid and had never been diagnosed
with dementia.
Claiming that she held magouirk's power of
attorney, gaddy had her transferred to
hospice-lagrange, a 16-bed unit owned by
the same family that owns the hospital.
Once at the hospice, gaddy stated that she
did not want her grandmother fed or given
water.
"grandmama is old and I think it is time
she went home to jesus," gaddy told
magouirk's brother and nephew, mcleod and
ken mullinax. "she has glaucoma and now
this heart problem, and who would want to
live with disabilities like these?"
gaddy's telephone is not in operation and
she could not be reached for comment.
According to mullinax, his aunt's local
cardiologist in lagrange, Dr. James
brennan, and Dr. Raed agel, a highly
acclaimed cardiologist at the nationally
renowned university of alabama-birmingham
medical center, determined that her aortic
dissection is contained and not
life-threatening at the moment.
Mullinax also states that gaddy did not
hold power of attorney, a fact he learned
from the hospice's in-house legal counsel,
carol todd.
On march 31, todd told ruth and ken
mullinax during a phone conversation
georgia law stipulated that ruth mullinax
and her brother, a.B. Mcleod, were
entitled to make any and all decisions for
magouirk. Ruth mullinax immediately told
todd to begin administering food and
fluids through an iv and a nasal feeding
tube.
Todd had the iv fluids started that
evening, but informed the family that they
would have to come to the hospice to sign
papers to have the feeding tube inserted.
Once that was done, magouirk would not be
able to stay at the hospice.
Ken mullinax recalled that todd said the
only reason magouirk was in the hospice in
the first place was that the lagrange
hospital had failed to exercise due
diligence in closely examining the power
of attorney beth gaddy said she had, as
well as exercising the provisions of
magouirk's living will.
Todd explained that gaddy had only a
financial power of attorney, not a medical
power of attorney, and magouirk's living
will carefully provided that a feeding
tube and fluids should only be
discontinued if she was comatose or in a
"vegetative state" – and she was
neither.
Gaddy, however, was not dissuaded. When
ken mullinax and mcleod showed up at the
hospice the following day, april 1, to
meet with todd and arrange emergency air
transport for magouirk's transfer to the
university of alabama-birmingham medical
center, hospice-lagrange stalled them
while gaddy went before troup county, ga.,
probate court judge donald w. Boyd and
obtained an emergency guardianship over
her grandmother.
Under the terms of his ruling, gaddy was
granted full and absolute authority over
magouirk, at least for the weekend. She
took advantage of her judge-granted power
by ordering her grandmother's feeding tube
pulled out, just hours after it had been
inserted.
Georgia law requires that a hearing for an
emergency guardianship must be held within
three days of its request, and magouirk's
hearing was held april 4 before judge
boyd. Apparently, he has not made a final
ruling, but favors giving permanent
guardianship power to gaddy, who is
anxious to end her grandmother's life.
Ron panzer, president and founder of
hospice patients alliance, a patients'
rights advocacy group based in michigan,
told wnd that what is happening to
magouirk is not at all unusual.
"this is happening in hospices all over
the country," he said. "patients who are
not dying – are not terminal – are
admitted [to hospice] and the hospice will
say they are terminally ill even if
they're not. There are thousands of cases
like this. Patients are given morphine
and ativan to sedate them. If feeding is
withheld, they die within 10 days to two
weeks. It's really just a form of
euthanasia."
ken mullinax does not want that to happen
to his aunt. He pointed out that one of
the ironies in this tragedy is that the
now-helpless woman worked for years as a
secretary for a prominent local cancer
doctor.
"she devoted her whole life to helping
those who heal others, and now she's being
denied sustenance for life," he said.
Mullinax said he has begged gaddy to let
him take on full responsibility for his
aunt's care.
"if she would just give us a chance to
keep aunt mae alive, that's all we ask,"
he said. "they [beth and her husband,
dennis gaddy] have a family and beth is a
teacher, and it was just getting to be a
lot of trouble. But i'm the caregiver for
my mom, and aunt mae could move in with
us. We'll buy another house with a
bedroom and we'll take care of her. She
can move in with us once she can leave the
hospital."
but her health becomes more precarious by
the hour. Her vital signs are still good,
but since admission to hospice she has not
been lucid – "but who would be since
nourishment and fluids have been denied
since march 28," mullinax remarked.
Attorney carol todd could not be reached
for comment; a message on her voicemail
said she would be gone the entire week of
april 4. Hospice-lagrange did not return
phone calls
what is wrong here even with a living will
you can be sentenced to death by your so
called loved ones?
|
2ferano
Extremely EHEALTHy
Joined: 23 Dec 2003 Posts: 3717
Posted: 04-09-05 01:46am
That is the fault of the hospice. You
cannot just say, "oh, yeah i'm the power
of attorney, or the legal guardian," (or
whatever.) documented proof has to be
given.
So, if in fact all of those "facts" are
true, which they usually arent but you
never know, then that is the fault of the
hospice. It is also the fault of the
person who said not to give a feeding tube
when she knew that wasn't what was stated
in the living will, but legall that is the
fault of the hospice. That is probably
going to be one heck of a law suit!
