The Michael Schumacher Career/Injury/Recovery Thread

Your prior experience of your grandfather suffering this undignified death allowed you and your family to make the correct decision with your father's unfortunate circumstance. Would you have pulled the ventilator had you not had the prior experience? You may not have done so without your grandfather's experience.

 

Liability (release from therefore)

 

I don't know how to answer and give you the answer based on the point in time.

I was in my 4th year of medical school at the time of my Grandfather's stroke. My medical background, including my understanding of his medical chart, suggested that we "pull the plug." I recommended that to my family. But, candidly, to that point in time, I had not fully formed by world view. Anyhow, my family overruled the decision. My grandfather had 9 children, and I was "just" a grandchild with a small voice.

When my dad died, I used my medicine, along with the ER doctor and the neurologist who consulted with the family to "inform" my family to the point that they complied.

It was the right decision for us.

I cannot say that it is the right decision for Schuey--only his family can say that. But for us, it was right.

 

Perhaps it is just a false time scale, but perhaps the one year anniversary of the accident will serve as a wake up call.

We hope something better will happen before that time.

But probability is starting to get very thin.

 

Yeah, this brings up pains that are still fresh. My mom developed dementia the last few years of her life, and it was a horrible tragedy. She had been the toughest, shrewdest businesswoman and negotiator you could imagine. Dad used to let her buy all the vehicles because she could reduce a salesman to tears. lol. To watch her lose all that and become stark, raving mad while I cared for her was the toughest thing I've ever dealt with.

This is why I will never voice anything negative about the Schumachers or Michael's caregivers. I know what those who love the guy are going through, and they deserve the utmost respect and admiration. It's one of those impossible things you can do no better than to just muddle through. No outsider's perspective means *****.

Cheers,

George

 

Those if us who have had to face situations like this understand.

 

Yep. My grandfather had dementia before the stroke. He peed in the bed, opened the windows of his bedroom in winter, woke up in the middle of the night and started beating on the furniture, and turning on the TV at full volume. It was sad.

 

I just can't seem to digest a simple skiing incident 6 months ago, and today here we are all talking about the worst. I've tried my best to remain positive and think that he can pull this through, but i'm really losing hope.

No updates and keeping all of us in the dark aren't really helping actually. I just hope God is by his side and his family side, and somehow, he can still pull through. Imagine the hope he will give people out there should he pull through. Sigh...

 

The dogs we love are treated with more respect and dignity when their time is up. I hope in the future this will also apply to our human loved ones.

 

Let's be honest, medical students know very little compared to mature clinicians - is it really surprising they didn't really listen?

 

Maybe I didn't explain it properly. I wasn't discussing it with doctors; I was discussing it with family. With my grandfather, I was a medical student. I was actually a 4th year, who had been through rotations in Surgery, OB/GYN, Psych, Medicine, Emergency Medicine and maybe a couple more.

Nobody else in my family had ANY medical training at all. And I lobbied to pull the plug. I could read the chart. I could show them the X-Rays with a large pool of blood in the head; I could given them information in lay terms.

But because I had 8 aunts and uncles, in addition to my parents, I had no influence. I was only 26 years old, and was just giving them information. My ability to lobby was almost non-existent. Later, they said they wish they had listened to me.

With my own father, I was one of his two sons. I was over the age of 50, and my mother respected my opinion on the matter. When I "translated" the attending physician's assessment, and when I reminded them of grandfather's situation, the family quickly decided to allow my father to die with dignity.

 

Very true.

 

Mrs-the-Lad and I just updated all the legal documents around this. It's always a sobering process. There are several medical professionals in our family, so being able to consult with them is a comfort.

 

Trapped between life and death - The Week

an interesting article in relation to Schumacher's terrible predicament

 

Insightful, if not terrifying read; reminds me of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly...

 

Sorry I didnt see your question before.There is a difference between withdrawing treatment and withdrawing care. Let the next pneumonia take its course.

 

Perhaps you were a more accomplished student than those I know. I mean med students now know bugger all compared to what I knew at their stage.

 

What a scary situation to be in ...

 

That was not the point of my post. In my large family, I was the only one with any medical training. I was simply trying to give them an informed view of the condition.

And they didn't want that. They wanted hope and miracles. When I couldn't give it, they decided that they would keep him on life support and roll the dice for a miracle. Instead it turned into a long agonizing ordeal.

BTW, I agree that med students don't know nearly as much as they think they know. And, some hospitals these days are not even doing real dissections with real cadavers--they are doing them on computers.

 

I will still pray for a miracle but if its time for him to go, then take him Lord, just take him.

God Bless MS, his family, friends and to all of us who will always be inspired by his life.

 

A nice article with some quotes from F1's heavy hitters:

Buchignani: A thought and a prayer for Michael Schumacher

 

Apparent reports of Schumacher remaining in Grenoble hospital but moved to the rehab unit.

Unconfirmed by Sabine as of yet.


I really hope this is true, disgusting rumours if not. I have no idea if it's normal for someone in a coma to go to a rehab unit, but I'm sure doctors here will chime in soon...

Schumacher moved within Grenoble hospital - report | News | Motorsport.com

 

That's news if that's the case. You don't go to rehab if you're not recovering.

 

The source is Bunte. Think "US Weekly". A German feel good magazine for women. Neither the best nor the worst reputation.

I wouldn't hold my breath

 

thanks.

I guess we'll wait and see...