Printed from: https://archive.cmf.org.uk/advocacy/pressrelease/?id=7
Published: 22nd March 2002
CMF General Secretary Peter Saunders said, 'This case has upheld the firmly established legal principle that a mentally competent person has the right to refuse treatment. But there are worrying aspects. Rights cannot be considered in isolation from duties; and the clear implication of the ruling is that the NHS Trust failed in its "duty" to arrange for Miss B's ventilator to be switched off, when she had expressed that it be done. In giving Miss B the right to have her ventilator switched off and also in awarding (albeit nominal) damages to compensate her for 'trespass' and ordering the hospital trust involved to pay court costs of £55,000, Dame Butler Sloss has reinforced concern that personal autonomy is increasingly gaining the upper hand over the sanctity of life.'
'It is sobering that Miss B was not willing to consider flicking the switch herself, for fear of creating the impression to a godchild that she was committing suicide. However she was quite prepared for someone else to do it for her. It is essential that we resist any further pressure on doctors, who for moral or ethical reasons are unwilling to perform any action which will directly result in a patient's death, to do so in the future.'
'It is good medical practice to withdraw life-sustaining treatment when death is both imminent and inevitable and the burden of that treatment outweighs its benefit. But Miss B's death is neither inevitable nor imminent and there are alternative supportive and rehabilitative treatments available which other patients in a similar position find acceptable. It may be that given time and good supportive treatment, Miss B would have been able to accept and adapt to her disability better, and it is sad that the issue had to come to the courts.'
'We must firmly guard against medicalising existential angst; where non-treatment decisions are made due to a patient losing the will to live. Life does not lose its meaning and value because of quadriplegia; and this case is a further challenge for Christians to be fully involved in providing compassionate care for those who through loss of function have also suffered loss of hope.'
Steven Fouch (CMF Head of Communications) 020 7234 9668
Alistair Thompson on 07970 162 225
Christian Medical Fellowship (CMF) was founded in 1949 and is an interdenominational organisation with over 5,000 doctors, 900medical and nursing students and 300 nurses and midwives as members in all branches of medicine, nursing and midwifery. A registered charity, it is linked to over 100 similar bodies in other countries throughout the world.
CMF exists to unite Christian healthcare professionals to pursue the highest ethical standards in Christian and professional life and to increase faith in Christ and acceptance of his ethical teaching.
