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The Case of Terri Schiavo: Ethics at the End of Life

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At first glance it would seem that THE CASE OF TERRI SCHIAVO: ETHICS AT THE END OF LIFE is another focus on her case alone - but actually its focus on end-of-life ethical questions holds far more meaning for the living than for the dead of the past. The ethical dilemmas surrounding end of life are many - and are surveyed in depth in a coverage which uses not just Terri's case but similar cases to expose issues, struggles and obstacles to quality of life and survival. Essays cover everything from legal issues and points to ethical concerns.

Diane C. Donovan, Editor
California Bookwatch

There have been several books on Terri Schiavo. Jon Eisenberg wrote "Using Terri". He was the lead counsel for Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband in his litigation with the Schindlers (Teri's parents). The Schindlers had also written their own book, "A Life that Matters". Their lawyer himself wrote "Fighting for Dear Life". Michael Schiavo wrote "Terri: the Truth". These books are clearly partisan and some, especially that of the Schindlers were highly emotive. "The Case of Terri Schiavo", edited by Caplan, McCartney, and Sisti is a compilation of various materials written contemporaneously or shortly after the case(s) - the Terri litigation involved many rounds in various courts. Some of the materials in Caplan's book were clearly non-partisan. They might be described as "objective" in the sense that they were documents prepared impartially even though the conclusion favoured one side instead of the other. One such document was the autopsy report. There were others that were not objective. Most of the less objective ones were based on religious beliefs rather than fact, evidence, and reason. Edward Furton's article in the book, for example, questioned the basis which a person can be said to be "unaware". Furton believed in the Catholic view of the human soul (whatever that might be). Such writers have not answered the basic question that Ronald Dworkin posed in "What is Sacred?" (Bioethics, Oxford University Press, 2001). Even assuming that a person in a persistant vegetative state (as Terri was)could regain momentary consciousness from time to time (which wasn't the case with Terri Schiavo), the question would be whether that person would desire continued medical treatment or be left to die without further and useless treatment? Would that person himself/herself wish to be in THAT condition - physically paralysed, unconscious 99% of the time, and in rare moments of wakefullness, be incacapble doing anything. The materials in Caplan's book will help the reader contemplate this question rationally. The non-rational religious declarations only serve to highlight how unreasonable we can be when it comes to the rights of other people. As Dworkin wrote: "Making someone die in a way that others approve, but he believes a horrifying contradiction of his life, is a devastating, odious form of tyranny."

Arthur L. Caplan, James J. McCartney, & Dominic A. Sisti, editors
The Case of Terri Schiavo:
Ethics at the End of Life

(Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books: [...], 2006) 352 pages
(ISBN-10: 1-59102-398-X; paperback)
(ISBN-13: 978-1-59102-398-2; paperback)
(Library of Congress call number: R726.C357 2006)
(Medical call number: WB60C377 2006)

This is a collection of writings previously published
having some bearing on the case of Terri Schiavo.
Some are provided as background medical ethics.
Others specifically discuss the case of Terri Schiavo.

Main sections: Facts and other cases of patients in PVS;
Florida legal decisions; Federal actions: courts, Congress, President;
Roman Catholic positions on patients in PVS; aftermath.

This reviewer found the Roman Catholic section the most useful.
It shows that many different Catholic moral thinkers
have faced the issue of what to do with patients in PVS.
Most of these thinkers find some situations
in which it would be permissible to disconnect life-support systems.

This volume can be used mainly as a source book:
It presents the basic facts and general opinions for further study.
The introduction to each section is rather brief.
And some of the more technical documents, such as the autopsy report,
could have been explained in terms more readily intelligible to laypersons.
Other books about Terri Schiavo
provide deeper analysis of the implications of her case.

If you would like to read other reviews of similar books,
Search the Internet for: "Books on the Right-to-Die".

James Leonard Park, advocate of the right-to-die with careful safeguards.