2008 Woodie Awards
Students discuss living wills in light of Schiavo case
Ilana Weinberg ; U-WIRE (DC BUREAU)
Issue date: 4/13/05 Section: News
- Page 1 of 2 next >
WASHINGTON - Terri Schiavo died last Thursday, ending a long contested personal and political battle over her right to die. The feeding tube was removed almost two weeks earlier from the 41-year-old woman, who had spent 15 years in a vegetative state.
The legal battle between her husband, Michael, and her parents was put to rest when the federal courts adhered to a decision refusing to allow Schiavo's parents to block an order to remove the feeding tube. Although much of the public is relieved that Terri can now rest in peace, there are many moral and ethical legacies that her life, and death, will leave us with.
In light of the fight over Terri's right to die, or right to live, depending on which side you look at it from, the public has become more aware of the living will. A living will is the popular name for a written statement of your wishes for health care should you no longer be competent enough to take part in decisions about your own medical treatment. Had Schiavo had one, there may have been a lot less strife and feud within her family.
"I have had these discussions with my mother, and it's always been deeply ingrained in me that we feel that once it's our time to go, it's time and there should be nothing artificial in our bodies to keep us alive," said George Washington University senior Erin Maguire. "The time that somebody becomes so sick, it's already so emotional for the family, and I think it's horrible that these fights cause so much more unrest. I think [a living will] just makes things easier and less complicated."
"I think they're important. I'd definitely get one. My family and I already talked about what our wishes would be, so it would be very clear what we would want if something did happen. And we've all made it clear that we wouldn't want to go to the lengths that some others have," said Georgetown University senior Matthew Stewart.
This debate has taken on even more meaning in light of the passing of Pope John Paul II, who died just a day later. As the leader of the Catholic world, the Pope took a traditionally conservative stance, denying that families had any moral right to end artificial health care measures to keep patients alive.
The legal battle between her husband, Michael, and her parents was put to rest when the federal courts adhered to a decision refusing to allow Schiavo's parents to block an order to remove the feeding tube. Although much of the public is relieved that Terri can now rest in peace, there are many moral and ethical legacies that her life, and death, will leave us with.
In light of the fight over Terri's right to die, or right to live, depending on which side you look at it from, the public has become more aware of the living will. A living will is the popular name for a written statement of your wishes for health care should you no longer be competent enough to take part in decisions about your own medical treatment. Had Schiavo had one, there may have been a lot less strife and feud within her family.
"I have had these discussions with my mother, and it's always been deeply ingrained in me that we feel that once it's our time to go, it's time and there should be nothing artificial in our bodies to keep us alive," said George Washington University senior Erin Maguire. "The time that somebody becomes so sick, it's already so emotional for the family, and I think it's horrible that these fights cause so much more unrest. I think [a living will] just makes things easier and less complicated."
"I think they're important. I'd definitely get one. My family and I already talked about what our wishes would be, so it would be very clear what we would want if something did happen. And we've all made it clear that we wouldn't want to go to the lengths that some others have," said Georgetown University senior Matthew Stewart.
This debate has taken on even more meaning in light of the passing of Pope John Paul II, who died just a day later. As the leader of the Catholic world, the Pope took a traditionally conservative stance, denying that families had any moral right to end artificial health care measures to keep patients alive.