In a world where pre-term humans are treated like biological material, it’s not unusual that hospitals have draconian policies when dealing with premature babies.
According to the UK daily mail, babies born under 1 pound or before 22 weeks are not considered viable. That is, they are not worth the time, energy, and resources to resuscitate.
Fortunately for little Maddalena Douse, a pair of scissors saved her life.
She was born prematurely at just 23 weeks. It’s rare for a baby to survive this early, but she exceeded the minimum weight required to give her medical attention. If she had weighed an ounce less, she would not have been resuscitated.
It was later discovered that a pair of scissors had been left on the scale, bumping up her weight, and thus saving her life. Her actual weight was just 13.4 ounces.
Contrary to policy, the resuscitation worked, and a few months later, her parent’s reported this:
She now weighs 5½ lbs and is getting stronger by the day. She’s our little miracle and we’re so glad to have her home in time for Christmas.
Rather than dumb luck, shouldn’t ethical polices save lives? Whatever happened to the Hippocratic Oath?
“You have been my God from my mother’s womb. ” Psalm 22:10 CSB
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