Controversial Charlie Gard Case Ends with his death

Steve Corey is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Anger and Sadness by Christian Activitsts

Multiple media reports have confirmed that the British baby Charlie Gard, who suffered from a terminal illness has breathed his last in hospice care. He was involved in a legal dispute which gained high international profile. He died after one day of being transferred by a High Court.

Controversial Charlie Gard Case Ends with his death[/tweetthis]
Gard suffered from MMDS, a rare genetic problem. The MMDS affected his muscles and his brain. He was unable to breathe by himself or move his limbs. His case went from painful family tragedy to a legal drama famous all over the world due to disagreements between the doctor and Connie Yates and Chris Gard, his parents. The latter preferred that he be moved to the United States for a few experimental treatments.

The Great Ormond Street Hospital refused, saying the US treatment will be ineffective against MMDS. Gard’s parents were warned that such a step could harm the baby. Both the hospital, its doctors, and a number of independent medical experts, consented that the treatment will only lead to the baby suffering for a lengthier amount of time.

As per UK law, doctors can overrule parents’ wishes in their treatment decision in a case where a decision will benefit the child. UK courts upheld the hospital’s decision. Eventually, the American doctor, who told the parents about the experimental surgery, after seeing the latest MRI scans, said that he believes that Gard cannot be helped anymore. Gard’s parent soon dropped their wish of taking him to the US.

Gard’s parents had accepted that their child has no reasonable improvement prospects. They blamed his muscle deterioration while fighting with the Great Ormond Street Hospital. Doctors came to the conclusion that the experimental treatment will not be effective.
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Ms. Yates and Mr. Gard asked for their child to permitted to die at his home. The parents described their demand as ‘last wish’.

On July 31, Gard’s parents abandoned their legal battle. He was then moved to an unnamed hospice, where his life support was switched off. He was 11 months old.

Resources

• NPR
• The Guardian
• NYT
• BBC
• BBC

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