Beacons on the Horizon

Abstract

Over lunch some of the nurses are discussing Tom’s predicament. One nurse, who is still in training, tells that his case was addressed in an ethics class:

‘Eighty percent of the nurses do not want to go on with this child because he will never get off the respirator. We continue to provide care, but at night I sometimes can’t sleep because of his sorry case. The doctors, with the exception of Rijnders, want to go on, notably Geert Hogebeemt, probably because a few weeks ago he managed to get Tom out of a crisis. After all this effort he now wants to go all out. Rijnders and Margaret have their doubts. But, well, he is the youngest neonatologist and she is only a resident. I do not understand why they keep going on any longer because, as you can see, this child’s chances are slight and if he will live, what kind of life are we talking about?’