Terri Schiavo Case Study

Moyamoya’s cause is unknown. However, it is a progressive blood vessel disorder in which the carotid artery in the skull becomes blocked or narrowed, reducing blood flow to the brain.

When a patient is unable to make decisions for himself or herself, their caregivers and those who know them are appointed to make the decisions based on what the patient would have wanted. This is called surrogate decision making. According to the article Terri Schiavo and End-of-Life Decisions “when surrogate decision makers and caregivers cannot agree upon what that choice would have been, they may turn to the courts to determine either what the now-incapacitated patient would have chosen or who is best suited to choose as the patient would have” (Mathes, 2005)

#1 With no change in volume (utilization), is the clinic projected to make a profit?

In the year of 1990 on February 25, a presumably healthy young women by the name of Theresa Marie Schiavo better known as Terri suffered a massive heart attack in her Florida home which left her with serve brain damage. At the age of 26 she found herself unable to speak, or move, and unfortunately without a living will in place. How can she have told them what she really wanted if unable to talk in a vegetative state? Terri, although able to breathe on her own, found herself unable to eat or use the bathroom without the aid of a machine or person she was literally a prisoner in her own body. By law her husband Michael Schiavo was in charge of making treatment decisions for her , and after two years of therapy he wanted to disconnect the feeding tubes that helped keep her alive.

I have chosen to discuss the case of Terri Shiavo which was a very big ethical case back in 2005. She had been left on a ventilator for 15 years. So let’s start from the beginning. On February 25, 1990 Terri Schiavo had a cardiac arrest that was causes by extreme hypokalemia (low potassium) brought on by an eating disorder (Quill, 2005). As a result of this cardiac arrest Terri developed severe hypoxic – ischemic encephalopathy which is another way of saying lack of oxygen to the brain (Quill, 2005). During this period she exhibited no evidence of brain function and eventually scans of her brain showed severe atrophy of her cerebral hemispheres (Quill, 2005). Her electroencephalograms were fat, indicating no functional activity of the

On July 22, 2015 at approximately 10:22 PM, I Deputy Bowring, was dispatched to 650 County Road 1858 Yantis, Texas, regarding a possible structure fire.

No matter the age, everyone should have a plan for when he or she is comatose and unable to make decisions. When there is no living will or medical power of attorney assigned for the patient the spouse and the patient’s family may not see eye to eye on how to go about the situation. The spouse may want to let the patient die and family may think that the patient will come out of their comatose state or vice versa. There was a case known as the Terri Shiavo case that occurred almost eleven years ago. She had no medical power of attorney or living will leaving her life in the hands of her husband, Michael, who thought he knew what was best and her family who thought the same.

Heather Fisher lost nine liters of blood after she delivered her daughter Jasmine. It is a miracle that she survived. Heather had a high-risk pregnancy, and she was already at an increased risk for hemorrhaging because of her previous C-section scars. She went into labor at just 30 weeks pregnant.

On 12/8/17, at approximately 2330 hours, I was dispatched to 1703 Southwest Rd, Sanford, Seminole County in reference to attempted burglary and criminal mischief. Upon arrival I spoke with Algerine Miller (b/f victim), who stated that someone attempted to break inside of her home through the front door.

Terri a 44 year-old African American female present to outpatient counseling for severe anxiety and depression. The client identified current relationship problems with her boyfriend and multiple lapses while in recovery as stressors. Terri began recovery several months prior to seeking additional counseling. She also received services from a substance abuse counselor but wanted a separate counselor for possible couples counseling.

The Terri Shiavo case had a significant impact on legislation. After numerous appeals in the court regarding both removing as well as reinstating ANH (Artificial Nutrition and Hydration), the in 2003, the Florida House and Senate passed "Terri's Law" which for the first time in history granted permission to governor to direct a specific medical act be carried out on the patient. In 2004, the Florida Supreme court declared "Terri's Law" as retroactive legislation citing separation of powers and citizens' right to privacy as justification.

CASA Volunteer “Ms. Loretta” took a case with two little girls, ages 3 and 5 when they came into care for severe neglect.

After reading this scenario about this patient, there are a few things that I wonder about and things that could have potentially contributed to this patient’s death. First, I do not understand why they did not place an Ewald tube down this patient and perform some sort of gastric lavage with activated charcoal (Gastric, 2017). They did all the work to stabilize the patient, but did not remove the remainder of the product, causing the acidosis. Basically, I feel that the patient came in with metabolic acidosis because of the aspirin, was stabilized, but then developed metabolic acidosis again. Which could have lead to a whole new list of complications to develop.

We are born to die. One can say we are born to make a difference, impact the world, cause a change no matter how insignificant. However, the truth is we are put on this planet to die. There are books, movie, dramas, documentaries on the essence of life how to prolong, and stop it, the fountain of youth. However, when it all boils down to it, the outcome is death. It is unavoidable with life comes death the yin to its yang one universally incomplete without the other. Out of the millions of those who die in the world, only a select few get cast with the gruesome knowledge of their approaching demise Majority of the selected few being the terminally ill. There is about a total of 2,626,418 deaths in the united states in the year of 2015 out of those deaths 1,432,591 die of terminal diseases. Going through immense pain and suffering to ultimately meet their end. Those who may have been your friends, family, or acquittanced. With their death being unavoidable why not allow them to take their last moments in the way that want. With euthanasia or assisted suicide, the terminally ill patients can do just that. Euthanasia, also known as assisted suicide, means to take a deliberate action with the express intention of ending a life to relieve intractable suffering. They are given a choice to relieve themselves of the pain and suffering that they will ultimately kill them in the end. Assisted suicide for the terminally ill is the moral and logical option of death for those

Is my loved one dying of thirst? These are questions that are frequently asked in a hospice home setting, where family members are the primary caregiver. Hospice nurses are posed with answering this controversial topic. Water is not needed in a dying person because it is the process of dying and can cause more harm in a person. The National Guideline Clearinghouse recommends supporting a dying person’s wish. Assessing the person for risk of aspiration, discussing the risk and benefits with the dying person, and caregivers involved. This is a significant topic that occurs in the dying process. For a person entering the dying process it is expected to drink less due to the body needing less and the shutting down of systems. (Brungardt, n.d.)