Introducing 

Prezi AI.

Your new presentation assistant.

Refine, enhance, and tailor your content, source relevant images, and edit visuals quicker than ever before.

Loading…
Transcript

Cause of Her Pain

"I'm trapped in a useless body."

"...it's too much of a struggle to live within the system or to depend on someone in the system. In reality, my disability is going to keep me from doing the living I want to do."

"If I really could, I would go out there and kill myself. But I can't. I physically can't,"

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Cerebral Palsy

  • Chronic disease
  • Is involved in different parts of the body, but the joints are always affected.
  • Joints become inflamed; Very painful

  • Disorder that impairs control of movement due to damage to the developing brain.
  • Sometimes gets better and sometimes gets worse
  • Up until college, Elizabeth was able to get around with the use of a wheelchair, but then the pain became too great.
  • Couldn't continue on to receive her Master's Degree

Patient Autonomy Denied

Elizabeth Bouvia vs Superior Court

  • In the year 1986, Bouvia was transferred to High Desert Hospital and when she could no longer be spoon fed due to nausea and vomiting, hospital staff inserted a nasogastric tube against her will in order to make sure she does not starve herself to death.
  • Hospital staff disputed that the interest of the state should triumph over the right of the patient to refuse treatment.

1986: Elizabeth Bouvia sued High Desert Hospital for giving her non consensual medical treatment in the form of a nasogastric tube or respecting her right to stop medical treatment.

  • Court Decision: Denied Bouvia’s request to remove the feeding tube because of her motive to starve herself to death and her prognosis of being able to live 15 to 20 years with the feeding tube.

Effect on Society

After the Court Cases

Bouvia’s appeal: The appellate court recognized that as a competent adult she had the right to exercise control over her body. The hospital staffed argued that the state’s interest was to preserve life, prevent suicide and protect innocent third parties.

  • Court Decision: Granted Bouvia’s request to remove the feeding tube because Bouvia was a competent woman that had the right to refuse treat and the previous court was just looking at quantity of life and quality.

  • Elizabeth did not kill herself after her victory.
  • By giving Elizabeth control of her life, Elizabeth found a reason to live.
  • In 1994, she lived in California on Medi-Cal, in a private hospital with 24-hour daycare.
  • 1997, disability payment was put into a trust fund and allowed her to live in an apartment by herself with an in home assistant.
  • As of 2013, she is alive but no one heard anything about her.

Right to die

Right to withdraw from medical treatment

Quality of life of the disabled

Paul Longmore

  • Disabilities Rights activist
  • Disabled with Polio, from age 7
  • Couldn’t use his hands
  • Believed Bouvia’s case was a reflection on society and the prejudice people have towards those with disabilities.
  • Frustrated that the court ruled in her favor, who concluded that she had the “right- to- die” as a disabled person.
  • believed Elizabeth was denied the right to live in a society which she could prosper without prejudice.
  • believed someone couldn't be given the right to die until they are given the right to live with dignity.

Paternalism

Definition: When certain health decisions of the patient are left in the hands of his/her healthcare provider

Non-

maleficience

Locus of

Authority

  • Elizabeth Bouvia was in critical pain. In 1983, she tried to starve herself in a public hospital in California which became very famous.
  • California court denied her judicial assistance to starve herself, and ordered hospitals to force-feed her if necessary.
  • After the court case, there was a dispute among the hospital physicians regarding Bouvia.
  • It was reported that when Bouvia tried to resist the force-feeding method, four attendant would hold her down while the tubing was inserted into her nose and the liquids were pumped into her stomach.

Teleology

Autonomy

Hospital Staff’s Reasoning

State rights included:

  • Preserving life
  • Preventing suicide
  • Protecting innocent third parties and
  • Maintaining the ethical standards of the medical profession, which included the right of a physician to effectively render necessary and appropriate medical services

References

Johnson, J. (1984). Right to late, fight to die: The Elizabeth Bouvia saga. The Disability Rag. Retrieved from http://www.broadreachtraining.com/advocacy/ebouvia.htm.

Pence, G. (2007). Medical ethics: Accounts of groundbreaking cases. (6th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill Humanities.

The Case of Elizabeth Bouvia

Group 7

Sarah Afzal, Lyncia Bertil, Michelle Fuller, Sina Li, & Jennifer Privado

Learn more about creating dynamic, engaging presentations with Prezi