EXCLUSIVE. While the family of Vincent Lambert is summoned to the University Hospital of Reims on July 15, the medical team should propose an end-of-life protocol.
The parents of Vincent Lambert, who are against stopping the diet and hydration of their son in a vegetative state for seven years, suffered a new setback on Monday. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has in fact refused to revise its decision in favor of stopping treatment for this patient.
And this Wednesday is The Obs which reveals a new twist in this affair; it could well mark its epilogue. A registered letter was received Tuesday by all the members of Vincent Lambert’s family, summoning them all on July 15, at the University Hospital of Reims, to discuss (with the medical team) the future of their loved one. Is it to transfer this patient to another department, as his parents are now demanding? Will an end protocol start? Why actor provides some answers.
An “accelerated” collegial procedure
According to a source close to the file, nothing is now opposed to the treatments that keep this patient alive from being stopped. “Today,” explains this healthcare professional, “the medical team led by Daniela Simon, in charge of Vincent Lambert, is involved in a procedure with a view to stopping treatment. As there are no new elements in this file, and given the confirmed opinion of the ECHR, and the latest expertise of neurologists, it would be very surprising if these doctors did not reach the same conclusions as those of Dr Eric Kariger ”.
A worsening state of health
For all these reasons, a collegial procedure (in accordance with the Leonetti law on the end of life) “accelerated” should be initiated. And during this family council, Daniela Simon would even intend to provide Vincent Lambert’s parents with new medical evidence to confirm the incurable condition of their son.
Moreover, his condition would have worsened, will try to demonstrate this practitioner. A recent ENT examination (by indirect laryngoscopy) would have confirmed that the patient’s swallowing disorders worsened. “Now, he even has swallowing disorders with his saliva, the cause of false routes,” they say.
Finally, Daniela Simon will “undoubtedly” remind parents of the 13 testimonies of former classmates of the Laon Nursing Training Institute (Aisne), where Vincent Lambert studied, relating comments made by the latter to the opportunity for internships on end of life, palliative care or severe disability. Inside, the man clearly stated that, “if such a situation were to happen to him, he would prefer to leave.”
A final neurological opinion to appease
For the sake of appeasement, the medical team in Reims would also intend to order a final opinion from a Parisian neurologist. The latest, led by Professors Marie-Germaine Bousser, Jacques Luauté and Lionel Naccache, had confirmed the irreversibility of Vincent Lambert’s brain lesions.
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