Jahi McMath may be moved to LI rehab facility New Beginnings, court documents show

[LiberalElite]

Source: Newsday

A Long Island facility for brain injured patients has offered to provide 24-hour care to Jahi McMath, the 13-year-old California girl declared brain dead after complications following tonsil surgery.

A state judge extended a deadline Monday that would keep the teen on life support for at least another week, a decision the girl's mother hailed as an answer to her prayers and a sign that she has been right to keep fighting for her daughter, who doctors have said will never recover.

Read more: http://www.newsday.com/news/health/jahi-mcmath-may-be-moved-to-li-rehab-facility-new-beginnings-court-documents-show-1.6699484

[FarPoint]

1. Who is paying?

I doubt insurance will pay for care when one is already deceased.

[warrant46]

2. Its not "care" its a science experiment

I wonder if Medicaid will pay for something like this ?

[civillawyer]

12. Is this really a problem about who is paying?

This is a tough time for the family. I could never imagine.

[LiberalElite]

15. They've raised some money on GoFundMe -

http://www.gofundme.com/Jahi-Mcmath

[tblue]

32. Glad to see I'm not the only one thinking

give them time. This is beyond anyone's worst nightmare. I can barely stand IMAGINING what they must be feeling.

Welcome to DU, civil lawyer!

[LiberalElite]

41. how

much time do you think they should be given? (serious question, not snark)

[civillawyer]

44. Tough Call

The T&A surgery was just on December 9, so we are talking 22 days since? As for how much time? Not for me to say. The family took their 13 y/o daughter in for a routine surgery, surrendering her health to medical professionals. Just think what their last words to her must have been. Then, watching perhaps helplessly as she slipped away. I cannot imagine the personal guilt those parents must be experiencing, and the feeling of not being able to care for and protect their child. One other thing, my young son broke his elbow fairly seriously and needed surgery just a few weeks ago. Nothing much more humbling and stomach-churning than having 2-3 strangers wheeling your child into another room where as a parent you cannot be to watch out for them.

[FarPoint]

45. It's not like there is a life to be saved at this point.

I think the family should pay for the care and maintenance.

[HERVEPA]

51. Yes of course it is. Any public money spent on this

could be used to save the lives of those actually alive. There is not an infiniote amout of money to be spent on medical care.
Or keeping a corpse breathing.

[civillawyer]

55. You really want to go down that slippery slope..

or even arguments about use of public money spent on health care issues that are friendly to you?

[HERVEPA]

56. Bless yor heart, you just don't understand something so basic, do you?

That slippery slope is constantly negotiated, and it has to be. Can a person on the street get the mechanical heart that Darth Cheney got. No! But money spent on this corpse could save a an actual living breathing human being.

[civillawyer]

57. Thanks for the strawman. Bless your heart...

I'll try to put my training wheels on next time I decide to respond to one of your insipid/insulting posts.

[HERVEPA]

58. Well, if you're actually a lawyer...

I pity your clients. Lawyers should be using logic, and should logically be able to refute arguments they disagree with.

[civillawyer]

59. You are not worth it.

[HERVEPA]

61. Oh, I am heartbroken.

[JNinWB]

3. More info about the facility

Check out the house they are "rehabilitating"---has that Bates Motel vibe. The owners are (apparently) a hairdresser and a local mortuary owner. They are shooting for an Aug, 2014 opening.

The group has raised $35,000 of the roughly $250,000 needed to renovate the house, a two-story home on Sound Avenue that once served as a refuge for single mothers.

When completed, the 12-bed Brendan House will offer round-the-clock nursing care for those with traumatic brain injuries or other cognitive and physical disabilities as they make their recoveries and learn to live with their conditions.

http://riverheadnewsreview.timesreview.com/2013/03/44342/new-beginnings-targets-august-opening-for-long-term-care-facility/

[niyad]

6. I think the article (which is from march) was indicating an august 2013 opening. but --wow.

nothing in what I read indicates that they will have the medical facilities to care for this girl. apparently it is set up for people who need physical and cognitive therapy for tbi. doesn't say anything about it being equipped to handle someone declared brain dead.

this gets more bizarre and horrible by the day.

may this poor child pass in peace.

apparently, at one point this building was a home for unwed mothers.

this appears to be a second facility, not the one where the girl would go.

[LiberalElite]

10. From the website - The founder and president of New Beginnings

while well-meaning, has a degree in cosmetology. She is getting guidance and support from Congressman Tim Bishop (D-1st District NY). http://www.nbli.org/about/

It's not clear that Brendan House is really open for accepting patients yet - this article refers to a young man who'll be able to move in - in Spring 2014.
http://www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/long-island-now-1.1732330/inmates-pitch-in-for-riverhead-group-home-build-1.6485247

The definition of Traumatic Brain Injury according to the Centers for Disease Control is:

"Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious public health problem in the United States. Each year, traumatic brain injuries contribute to a substantial number of deaths and cases of permanent disability. Every year, at least 1.7 million TBIs occur either as an isolated injury or along with other injuries.

A TBI is caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Not all blows or jolts to the head result in a TBI. The severity of a TBI may range from “mild,” i.e., a brief change in mental status or consciousness to “severe,” i.e., an extended period of unconsciousness or amnesia after the injury."

I don't understand how they could even consider taking this girl.

[LisaL]

13. The article I found dated December 2013 says its still under construction.

"The Riverhead Lions Club is donating $4,000 to a group home for survivors of traumatic brain injury called Brendan House, which is now under-construction on Sound Avenue."

http://riverheadnewsreview.timesreview.com/2013/12/49818/lions-donate-4k-to-brendan-house-pledge-2k-more-each-year/

[niyad]

16. again, this is a second facility. the one to which she would be sent has been running since 2011

but it is an OUTPATIENT facility.

[LisaL]

20. Again, how can she be an outpatient?

Jeez.
They want to transfer her to Brendan house for long term care. Brendan house is under construction. How do you envision her being an outpatient?

[niyad]

21. nowhere did I say that **** I**** envision her being an outpatient. I have been trying to

point out that the facility to which they plan to send her has been running since 2011 (which you keep ignoring), and point out that it is an outpatient facility, which is absolutely insane. sorry you are having so much trouble comprehending this.

[LisaL]

24. I don't have any trouble comprehending any of it.

I can't see how she can possibly be an outpatient and the long term care facility isn't even complted yet.
So I don't think she is going to New York any time soon. Do you?

[davidpdx]

47. Why did the hairdresser and the mortician cross the street?

To play god with dead people.

[cosmicone]

4. The ultimate in macabre and bizarre

With a dead brain, all the necessary hypothalamic release factors for a proper functioning of the hormones such as ACTH, thyrotropin etc. are gone. Pretty soon, the girl's dead body will need steroids, angiotensin and thyroid hormones.

That poor girl ...

[enlightenment]

33. No need to feel sorry for her.

She's gone.

I do feel sorry for the parents, because they are getting a shed load of very bad advice from someone (probably multiple someones). They don't understand, they are trapped in their grief, and unable to let go because they're getting this very bad advice. Now it sounds like the carrion birds are moving in to finish them off.

I really hope that the child's body shuts down before too much time passes. Regardless of any issue of law/negligence/malpractice the family might have with the hospital, the girl is gone and they need to finally see that.

[cosmicone]

37. The advice is probably coming from the ambulance chasing lawyer

who wants to maximize the damage award. The longer the corpse is kept on life support, the higher the award.

[enlightenment]

39. Perhaps,

though I suspect that the bible-toters are in the mix as well. Isn't the "not dead until the heart stops beating" a biblical thing?

[LiberalElite]

42. Pls see my post below re:

Terry Schiavo Foundation.

[FarPoint]

46. This is a metabolic nightmare with no feasible way to win.

Organ failure and demise is inevitable. There will be no way to mask the odor either....this is reality. The family must move forward and respect the life of the child with dignity.

[JI7]

5. this is just bizarre, could a court prevent them from putting her there ?

[SunSeeker]

7. It is not surprising that some charlatan stepped up to take their money.

This is just getting gross.

[niyad]

8. no kidding. this facility is an OUTPATIENT facility--they do not have the staff, or equipment,

for 24-hour, round the clock care.

oh, and another note, this lovely facility is in honour of terri schiavo. pretty much tells us all we need to know.

[LisaL]

11. Not only that, the long term care facility is still under construction.

It hasn't even been completed yet. Are they going to wait until construction is finished? How long do they expect the child will last in her brain dead condition? The judge only gave them until January 7th.

"The Riverhead Lions Club is donating $4,000 to a group home for survivors of traumatic brain injury called Brendan House, which is now under-construction on Sound Avenue."

http://riverheadnewsreview.timesreview.com/2013/12/49818/lions-donate-4k-to-brendan-house-pledge-2k-more-each-year/

[idwiyo]

17. Jees, I really hope surgeons will refuse to operate on dead body in prep for moving her.

[notadmblnd]

29. Being run by a hairdresser with a congressman as her benefactor.

I did read that right, didn't I?

[niyad]

30. unfortunately, yes, you did.

[notadmblnd]

31. She must give some damn good haircuts.

[davidpdx]

48. You aren't the only one who is shocked and disgusted

I think most people with an an ounce of common sense would be. It is the real fundy nutjobs that support this kind of thing. I hate to try to draw a comparison, but it reminds me of the "clinics" that try to convert gay people to being straight. It is anti-science and quite disturbing.

[LisaL]

9. The facility they supposedly want to transfer her to is still under construction.

It hasn't even been completed yet.

[niyad]

14. no, the one to which you refer is a second facility. the one to which they are supposedly

going to send her is an outpatient facility that has been running since 2011, for OUTPATIENTS

please read the link in the OP

[LisaL]

18. They want to transfer her to the Brendan house for long term care.

Brendan house is under construction at this time.
And how exactly can she be an outpatient?
She is bed ridden and attached to a ventillator. Are they going to wheel her in and out?
Where she is going to stay when she is out?
None of it makes any sense to me.

[warrant46]

60. Someone is out to raise some money and profit because of this

Want to know more

Follow the Benjamins !!

[niyad]

19. in reading the comments at the end of this article, it is clear that many people do not understand

the difference between "persistive vegetative state" and "brain dead". all hail terri shiavo.

[Mz Pip]

22. Science and superstition collide

Science tells us the girl is brain dead, will never ever recover. The family doesn't understand basic Biology. They hope and pray for a miracle will occur.

There are no miracles in cases like this.

[JNinWB]

25. Ten percent fewer Republicans accept evolution now...

...than they did 4 years ago.

How long until we start believing in vitalism again?

The philosophical doctrine that the phenomena of life cannot be explained in purely mechanical terms because there is something immaterial which distinguishes living from inanimate matter.

I was participating in a Jahi thread earlier in which the OP seemed to be treading uncomfortably close to this discarded theory.

[JNinWB]

23. Here is an interesting new report; the plot thickens....

...California Department of Public Health spokesman confirmed the agency was investigating the Jahi case, but would not comment on ongoing probes or who requested it...

An investigation starts when the department receives a complaint from outside the facility, or if the health care provider self-reports an incident that may be linked to a problem with care or a legal or regulatory violation, he said. Investigations include on-site inspections, interviews with staff, patients or their legal guardians, and reviews of medical records and policies.

...Hospital spokesman Sam Singer said Oakland Children's welcomes the probe.

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_24825721/jahi-mcmath-state-launches-investigation-into-medical-case

[LiberalElite]

26. This statement from the article -

"This includes a beating heart, circulation and respiration, the ability to metabolize nutrition and more. Jahi is a living human being."

They're either willfully ignorant or totally deliberately ignoring the facts. I wish they'd unplug her and see how much life she exhibits.

It also states that the place she would be transferred to is still under construction.

[XemaSab]

34. The first day of plant physiology, we talked about what life is

By the definition I learned, she's totally as alive as an avocado.

[LiberalElite]

35. and her mother -

is now complaining about the hospital not feeding her daughter.

[XemaSab]

36. Her mother also meets the definition of "live" that I learned in plant physiology

[LiberalElite]

27. The Terri Schiavo Foundation mentioned in that link?

Sarah Palin appeared at an awards ceremony they held earlier in 2013. Now the right wing is involved.

http://www.lifenews.com/2013/02/08/sarah-palin-to-headline-first-gala-for-terri-schiavo-foundation/

[kestrel91316]

28. That facility, if they take her remains and do anything with them,

needs to be prosecuted for abusing a corpse.

She's DEAD.

[JohninPA]

62. Zack Dunlap

You may want to ask him what dead means.

[XemaSab]

38. From the SF Chronicle:

"The restraining order expires at 5 p.m. Jan. 7. At 1 p.m. the same day, a federal judge is expected to hear arguments about possible violations of Jahi's civil rights, and the rights of families - not doctors, lawyers or politicians - to determine a loved one's death, based on their religious or personal beliefs."

[LiberalElite]

40. OH NO

I'd add to "based on their religious or personal beliefs" OR DELUSIONS.

[cosmicone]

49. I know

I wonder if I can make my dad (who passed away in 1989) "undead" just by belief.

[enlightenment]

50. Fine.

Let them "determine" death. If they are unwilling to accept established, tested medical opinion, then they obviously don't need medical intervention for their loved one - so pull the plugs, take out the tubes, and take that loved one home and care for them without it.

You don't get to have your cake and eat it, too.

[Mz Pip]

52. Terribly tacky of me

But the first thing I thought of when I read this was the Monty Pyton dead parrot sketch.

[LiberalElite]

53. You too?

I was afraid to post it but the Dead Parrot sketch has occurred to me more than once while reading this ongoing sad story.

[alp227]

43. Oakland Tribune: Jahi McMath may be transferred to treatment center in New York

The last hope for Jahi McMath to be kept on a ventilator may come from a former Long Island hairdresser who runs a brain-injury treatment center dedicated to Terri Schiavo, the Florida woman whose case sparked a fierce nationwide end-of-life debate.

The news of the possible transfer came as the state Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday it is investigating Children's Hospital Oakland and its handling of the Oakland 13-year-old after her tonsil surgery and two other procedures to remove throat and nasal tissue, complications from which left her brain dead.

On Tuesday, the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network said publicly for the first time that it has been helping Jahi's family for weeks to find a place to transfer her. The network has worked "in relative silence for the sake of the sensitivity of her case."

full: http://www.insidebayarea.com/news/ci_24825723/jahi-mcmath-state-launches-investigation-into-medical-case

[darkangel218]

54. The little girl is gone.

I just hope the parents find the much needed closure . What a horrible situation.