Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/30/health...nn-disqus-area

A rather extreme example but symptomatic of the issues that should be faced.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

My wife knows my feelings on the issue, and I hers. It's not written down as yet, but will be at some point in the future.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

This was initial reported by every news source up to now as complications with a "routine tonsillectomy".

Apparently it was far from it.

This poor girl suffered from obstructive and complex sleep apnea (throat collapse while sleeping preventing breathing and starves the brain of oxygen) and was struggling with the gold standard therpay of CPAP (positive airway pressure, basically a mask, hose and blower to help keep your throat open). I also have sleep apnea and and thankfully I'm now fine with using a CPAP machine and being a hose head.

She apparently was having such a rough time that they elected to perform some surgery to help her adjust in a more positive manner to the CPAP therapy. I did the same by electing to have a septoplasty and terbinate reduction.

At the end of the day Jahi underwent three surgical procedures for the treatment of her sleep apnea. This included a tonsillectomy, uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), and resectioning of nasal turbinates. Though initially described as a “routine tonsillectomy,” this degree of surgery in children is not routine. It is extensive. When performed on a child, the risk is high.

The palate surgery is combined with tonsillectomy part went fine. But I'm shocked at the amount of surgery they had lined up for this child in such a short time frame. Especially as the success rate for the UPPP procedure in curing sleep apnea is less than 30%. And the recovery is painful, as in I've heard stories of it making marines cry for weeks.

See a video of how UPPP surgery basically involves sawing off the front of your jaw to move it forward to help keep the throat open.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obEKNl8oqrg

So given that the tonsillectomy went fine. I'm guessing that she died of complications with the terbinate procedure (less likely) or the UPPP procedure (more likely).

But we will have to wait until the hospital is able to release the complete details.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

It's a horribly tragic case but as regards the family wanting to move her out of Children's Hospital into a long term care facility, the girl is dead. Effectively, they would be moving a corpse.

On a rather more mercenary note, who is going to fund the "long term care"?

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

I agree, perhaps a market for a new form of Cemetery?

I seem to remember quite a few stories usually involving people frozen in the hope that they could be cured later.

This is both very sad and somewhat telling.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

Sadly it seems that the family is banking on divine intervention.

Like Uncle Bob, I would have questions about the amount of surgery performed.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

This, pretty much. Sad, but sad things happen.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

As per Nutek, above, this is about it. ..... It's a free country, but why on earth was such extravagant surgery funded by the insurance, and who is paying to keep her out of the morgue?

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

It would appear the Court is ordering the Hospital to.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

So unless the hospital has a money tree, the insurers, and therefore, we, the insured, are! :frown:

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

It is a sad case for whatever reason it happened. I didn't know all the reasons for it happening. I thought that the parents were holding out until a transplant recipient could be brought in, and trying to keep her going until then.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

She is brain dead.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

From here on I suppose the ACA, which poses the question, should the ACA AKA Obamacare fund procedures like this?

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

He did say 'recipient' and that does happen, people are kept alive, after next of kin have agreed for organs to be used for donation, until such time as theri tissue type can be assesed, and matched, they are then taken to theatre, still 'alive' and the organs removed. This did happen to the daughter of a friend of mine, she died of a rare reaction to the drugs she was on, her parents agrrred she should donate her organs, and she carried an organ donor card.

Re: Jahi McMarth - how do you deal with such issues?
 

That may well be fair enough, but not it seems applicable in this case.

I had thought the reference was to her getting a transplant. Which of course is not possible.