Are doctors liable for failing to fully inform the parents of the risks and benefits of trying to save their extremely premature baby?
In this virtual jury verdict , the jury returned a verdict in favor of the parents who sued because they claimed they were not given the choice by their doctor to try to save their extremely premature baby. Instead, the doctor and hospital made the choice themselves to allow the baby to die without consulting with the parents and allowing them to make an informed decision.
Even though the odds of saving the child were at best only 50% , and even thought the odds of permanent neurological problems were greater than 50%, the parents state they would have chosen to try to save their child, even with the odds arguably against them.
Why do doctors and hospitals make choices everyday instead of discussing options with patients? Is it that healthcare providers do not believe people have the mental capacity to understand? Is it because the cost of treatment is too high when weighed with the odds of success? Perhaps in this case, the doctor’s choice to allow the baby to die, without telling the parents there was a chance to save the baby, was the right choice and saved the parents from the agonizing pain of having to choose.
One thing is for sure, the jurors in this case believed patients have a right to be fully informed before they make important medical decisions. It is their right, not the health care providers, to decide whether they should try to save their premature baby, even when the odds of survival or horrible neurological problems for the baby are possible.
