March 22, 2005

• If anyone is at all ambivalent regarding Terri Schiavo’s
  legally-sanctioned murder, and Michael Schiavo’s part in it, just read
  this affidavit by a nurse who cared for her for over a year.

  Here are some paragraphs:

  4. It was clear to me at Palm Gardens that all decisions regarding
  Terri Schiavo were made by Michael Schiavo, with no allowance made for
  any discussion, debate or normal professional judgment. My initial
  training there consisted solely of the instruction “Do what Michael
  Schiavo tells you or you will be terminated.” This struck me as
  extremely odd.
  
  
  
  5. I was very disturbed by the decision making
  protocol, as no allowance whatsoever was made for professional
  responsibility. The atmosphere throughout the facility was dominated by
  Mr. Schiavo’s intimidation. Everyone there, with the exception of
  several people who seemed to be close to Michael, was intimidated by
  him. Michael Schiavo always had an overbearing attitude, yelling
  numerous times such things as “This is my order and you’re going to
  follow it.” He is very large and uses menacing body language, such as
  standing too close to you, getting right in your face and practically
  shouting.
  
  
  
  6. To the best of my recollection, rehabilitation had
  been ordered for Terri, but I never saw any being done or had any
  reason at all to believe that there was ever any rehab of Terri done at
  Palm Gardens while I was there. I became concerned because Michael
  wanted nothing done for Terri at all, no antibiotics, no tests, no
  range of motion therapy, no stimulation, no nothing. Michael said again
  and again that Terri should NOT get any rehab, that there should be no
  range of motion whatsoever, or anything else. I and a CNA named Roxy
  would give Terri range of motion anyway. One time I put a wash cloth in
  Terri’s hand to keep her fingers from curling together, and Michael saw
  it and made me take it out, saying that was therapy.
  
  
  
  7. Terri’s
  medical condition was systematically distorted and misrepresented by
  Michael. When I worked with her, she was alert and oriented. Terri
  spoke on a regular basis while in my presence, saying such things as
  “mommy,” and “help me.” “Help me” was, in fact, one of her most
  frequent utterances. I heard her say it hundreds of times. Terri would
  try to say the word “pain” when she was in discomfort, but it came out
  more like “pay.” She didn’t say the “n” sound very well. During her
  menses she would indicate her discomfort by saying “pay” and moving her
  arms toward her lower abdominal area. Other ways that she would
  indicate that she was in pain included pursing her lips, grimacing,
  thrashing in bed, curling her toes or moving her legs around. She would
  let you know when she had a bowel movement by flipping up the covers
  and pulling on her diaper and scooted in bed on her bottom.
  
  
  
  8.
  When I came into her room and said “Hi, Terri”, she would always
  recognize my voice and her name, and would turn her head all the way
  toward me, saying “Haaaiiiii” sort of, as she did. I recognized this as
  a “hi”, which is very close to what it sounded like, the whole sound
  being only a second or two long. When I told her humrous stories about
  my life or something I read in the paper, Terri would chuckle,
  sometimes more a giggle or laugh. She would move her whole body, upper
  and lower. Her legs would sometimes be off the bed, and need to be
  repositioned. I made numerous entries into the nursing notes in her
  chart, stating verbatim what she said and her various behaviors, but by
  my next on-duty shift, the notes would be deleted from her chart. Every
  time I made a positive entry about any responsiveness of Terri’s,
  someone would remove it after my shift ended. Michael always demanded
  to see her chart as soon as he arrived, and would take it in her room
  with him. I documented Terri’s rehab potential well, writing whole
  pages about Terri’s responsiveness, but they would always be deleted by
  the next time I saw her chart. The reason I wrote so much was that
  everybody else seemed to be afraid to make positive entries for fear of
  their jobs, but I felt very strongly that a nurses job was to
  accurately record everything we see and hear that bears on a patients
  condition and their family. I upheld the Nurses Practice Act, and if it
  cost me my job, I was willing to accept that.
  
  
  
  9. Throughout my
  time at Palm Gardens, Michael Schiavo was focused on Terri’s death.
  Michael would say “When is she going to die?,” “Has she died yet?” and
  “When is that b**** gonna die?” These statements were common knowledge
  at Palm Gardens, as he would make them casually in passing, without
  regard even for who he was talking to, as long as it was a staff
  member. Other statements which I recall him making include “Can’t
  anything be done to accelerate her death – won’t she ever die?” When
  she wouldn’t die, Michael would be furious. Michael was also adamant
  that the family should not be given information. He made numerous
  statements such as “Make sure the parents aren’t contacted.” I recorded
  Michael’s statements word for word in Terri’s chart, but these entries
  were also deleted after the end of my shift. Standing orders were that
  the family wasn’t to be contacted, in fact, there was a large sign in
  the front of her chart that said under no circumstances was her family
  to be called, call Michael immediately, but I would call them, anyway,
  because I thought they should know about their daughter.
  
  
  
  I can’t imagine being the Schindlers, and having spent 15 years going through this. 

  • 2:20 pm
  • 4 Comments