Teen not allowed to get heart transplant

[ballen0351]

[video]http://www.today.com/video/today/52742929#52742929[/video]

According to the kids parents its because hes a criminal.

Not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand Hearts are not in great supply so if the choice was between this kid and another kid that hasnt been in trouble Id rather the non-criminal kids get the heart. On the other hand we dont hold kids responsible for there actions because they are kids so how can the Hospital punish him.

Now this is just the parents side of the story the Hospital may have other reasons we dont know about.

 

[Sukerkin]

Ooh that is a tough moral call and no mistake :nods:. We'll have to see how the story unfolds in terms of details before we can comment on it very much as a specific case.

The general idea of witholding aid from someone because they are antithetical to society is a philosophically knotty one. I think I could fall into arguing either side depending on how I felt on the day of the discussion.

 

[granfire]

well, putting a new heart in a body isn't as easy as changing the alternator in a car...

I could see where the troublesome past could be seen as high risk, like drug use etc...as I understand it, there is a myriand of medications one must take after the operation to keep the body from rejecting the organ...

Let's see how it pans out.

 

[jks9199]

Odds are he wasn't on house arrest for a first offense. Odds are also pretty good that, among other elements, he was given a treatment plan regarding his behavior. I can see the hospital assessing his over-all complaince with rules and laws, and saying that he's unlikely to take care of a new heart, so why entrust him with one of the limited supply of new hearts?

 

[sfs982000]

I thought they had also mentioned that they weren't sure if he was taking his medications like he should and wasn't going to follow up appointments as scheduled which also had an impact on thier decision.

 

[arnisador]

Odds are also pretty good that, among other elements, he was given a treatment plan regarding his behavior. I can see the hospital assessing his over-all complaince with rules and laws, and saying that he's unlikely to take care of a new heart, so why entrust him with one of the limited supply of new hearts?

I was thinking along similar lines--tough to get a new liver for alcohol-induced cirrhosis if you won't quit drinking, for example.

Not giving it to criminal minor is indeed a thorny issue if that's the main reason.

 

[oftheherd1]

I thought they had also mentioned that they weren't sure if he was taking his medications like he should and wasn't going to follow up appointments as scheduled which also had an impact on thier decision.

That was mentioned on the news I saw this evening. Apparently he hadn't been good at taking his meds in the past. High risk for failure.

 

[K-man]

Seems like they've had a change of heart (pun intended )

http://t.today.com/health/after-initial-denial-teen-granted-spot-heart-transplant-list-6C10910056

 

[granfire]

zippy-dee-doo-da....

Squeaky wheel gets the oil....

 

[clfsean]

Seems like they've had a change of heart (pun intended )

http://t.today.com/health/after-initial-denial-teen-granted-spot-heart-transplant-list-6C10910056

Yes you make enough noise & enough of the correctly veiled threats & you will get your way. It's the "new" American way.

So in the meantime, this kid gets the heart. Great fine & good. Everybody's happy. So now if things work out like already anticipated but overruled in favor of PC-ism, it fails & he dies from it failing... his family will now sue for wrongful death.

In the meantime a different recipient who probably did deserve the heart will die in the meantime.

 

[DennisBreene]

And the state pays for his care. Though a large percentage of such cases result in disability determination and on social security with state aid.