Terri Schiavo's death Thursday leaves the country divided over who decides if someone dies when there is no hope of recovery. Authorities in medicine and the law offer perspective.
By KATHY MATHESON, STAFF WRITER
Published in the Asbury Park Press 04/1/05
The epic court battle over Terri Schiavo ended Thursday when the brain-damaged woman died in a Florida hospice.
But the legal, medical and political controversies that swirled around her are likely to continue as the case remains a touchstone for rethinking end-of-life issues.
Specifically, some observers expect legislative repercussions as Schiavo's death energizes the right-to-life movement. Others see it as an opportunity to reopen the public discussion on living wills.
The 41-year-old Schiavo, who had been in a vegetative state for 15 years, died nearly two weeks after her husband won the right to remove her feeding tube. Schiavo did not have a living will ? written instructions regarding what kind of life-saving measures should be taken if she became incapacitated.
Michael Schiavo argued his wife had once told him she would not want to live in such a condition, but Terri Schiavo's parents wanted medical care to continue. The bitter, years-long family feud captivated the nation for much of the past month.
Norman Cantor, a law professor at Rutgers University in Newark who specializes in the legal aspects of death and dying, expects right-to-life proponents will push for a law in which incapacitated patients would only be allowed to die "where there are clear prior instructions."
"That's a very unfortunate policy because the vast majority of people don't leave clear prior instructions," Cantor said. "This legislation would mean the majority of people would have to be kept alive long beyond the point that they would really desire.
" Cantor was not referring to any organization in particular. But Marie Tasy, spokeswoman for New Jersey Right to Life, said she expects groups like hers to evaluate all of the judicial and legislative aspects of the Schiavo case "to see if there is a way to prevent this from happening in the future."
"All avenues will be evaluated," Tasy said.
Terri Schiavo was only 26 when she had a heart attack that might have been caused by an eating disorder. From that time until her death, doctors described her as being in a "persistent vegetative state" ? able to breathe on her own but unable to communicate. Her parents, however, insisted Schiavo sometimes responded to stimuli.
"As a society, we are going to have to decide when life begins and when it ends," said the Rev. Thomas Geoffroy of Christian Life Fellowship Church in Jackson. "Who is to say what quality of life is supposed to be? I don't believe her life was at the end."
Still, Schiavo's case reinforces the importance of living wills "regardless of age," said Jon Radulovic, spokesman for the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization in Alexandria, Va.
"It's important for younger people, too," Radulovic said. "You really need to share your thoughts and your wishes."
Living wills have been legally enforceable in New Jersey since 1991. But because the wills are not filed in a central repository ? they are given to doctors, lawyers and family members ? there's no way to gauge how many people have them.
A booklet containing a living will ? also called an advanced medical directive ? and a form designating a health care representative ? someone with the power to make medical decisions ? is available from the state Department of Health and Senior Services.
"There certainly has been an increased interest over the last two weeks," said William Isele, New Jersey ombudsman for the institutionalized elderly. His office comes under the health department.
Nurse practitioner Sharon Stark of Matawan tries to discuss living wills with her elderly and chronically ill patients, but it's not an easy subject to broach.
"They don't like to talk about such things," said Stark, who also teaches nursing at Monmouth University in West Long Branch. "Some people feel that it's almost an omen that something's going to happen to them. Other people . . . don't want to think that they have finality to their life."
But there are pitfalls even with living wills, especially if they are not regularly updated, said Tasy.
"What you might think at age 20 you might not think at age 50 or 60 or 70," Tasy said. "You have to be very careful about what that living will says and allows."
Staff writers Joseph Sapia and Joe Zedalis contributed to this story
Copyright ?2005 Asbury Park Press
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