Death Panels in Practice

The Death Panels ridiculed by so many liberal, please see pages 425 – 430 of H.R. II, are a necessary result of the State sponsored health care system so desired by those on the other side of the aisle. It is rather silly to think that there will be 3 people sitting behind a desk listening with compassion to the “cases” being made by doctors and family members trying to decide what to do, which way to go. No, in practice, doctors will make decisions based on the requirements and guidelines written into The National Health Service Protocols. A perfect example of the system in practice is illustrated in the British NHS regarding how doctors are to treat premature babies.
The guidelines state: 'If gestational age is certain and less than 23+0 (i.e at 22 weeks) it would be considered in the best interests of the baby, and standard practice, for resuscitation not to be carried out.'
Medical intervention would be given for a child born between 22 and 23 weeks only if the parents requested it and only after discussion about likely outcomes.
The rules were endorsed by the British Association of Perinatal Medicine and are followed by NHS hospitals.
In practice, this was applied to Jayden Chappell born 2 days shy of the specified 23 weeks and left to die while his mother Sarah Capewell pleaded for doctors to help her baby. So, despite guidelines indicating help will be given, it was in fact denied, no need to waste time scheduling a meeting of the Death Panel! The very heart and soul of medicine will be eviscerated when health care is nationalized. Since the definition of medicine is “the art and science of healing” I think we should have a contest to come up with possible new names for whatever “health” care system emerges from the Inferno.

This referenced story is from The Daily Mail, 9.10.2009, the link is: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1211950/Premature-baby-left-die-doctors-mother-gives-birth-just-days-22-week-care-limit.html