Schindler on Golubchuk

Terri Schiavo's brother, Bobby Schinder, is quoted in Friday's Winnipeg Free Press:

This is even worse than my sister's situation because here, the family is in agreement with keeping him alive, where we were battling with Michael Schiavo," he said. "This is alarming when you have hospitals making these decisions.

I do not agree that it is "worse," but it is certainly more serious. In Schiavo, the whole point was to honor and effectuate Terri's wishes. The dispute was an evidentiary one over who could best articulate those wishes. In contrast, in Golubchuk, the inquiry is unmoored from a focus on patient autonomy. But note that in many futility cases the inquiry is still focused on autonomy, on whether what the surrogate is requesting is really in accord with the patient's values, preferences, or best interests