Doctor in New Orleans cleared of murder charges
It is nice to sit back in our air conditioned comfortable houses, sip Green Tea and point fingers at people in New Orleans who did this or that during Katrina. Everyone would like to think that they would perform heroically under those severe circumstances. The bottom line is that we aren’t as noble and civilized as we would like to think. Basic needs of live were in question. Food. Water, clean, drinkable water. These things were hard to come by that Wednesday after the storm. Basic creature comforts that almost all Americans are used to were gone. There were no showers or baths. There wasn’t a change of clean underwear for some of these folks. So for me to sit back and criticize the life and death decisions that doctors made under these extreme conditions is wrong and hypocritical.
Anna Pou is the New Orleans physician who was charged with 2nd murder. A grand jury found her not guilty on Friday. Newsweek has a very long interview with her. It is excellent. Unfortunately, Dr. Pou’s legal troubles will be continuing. There are many civil lawsuits sitting in the hopper. I’m not sure that she will ever be able to practice again. It is hard if not impossible to get staff privileges once you have been nationally labeled as she has been.
I’m not judging what she did or didn’t do. I just don’t think that we can apply our normal standards to New Orleans during that time period.
The doctor was correct in what she did. Her intent was to alleviate suffering. That is what doctors do. And if they don’t do that, then they deviate from their ethics. Note that no patient remained in that hospital when she left. She stayed until the end. She could have tried to leave and save herself. Note that she went back to New Orleans to help after it was over. She didn’t abandon the city like so many.
As physicians, the only thing we can do in many cases is alleviate pain and suffering. That is our first intent.
I for one would have indicted her if she had not given those medications and let those patients be in pain for hours on end.
I applaud her for her courage and her commitment to those patients. What message do you think this lawsuit is going to send to other health care workers who heaven forbid maybe in a similar situation. Don’t do what you think is right because you will be second guessed by those who have never sat by a patient’s bedside when you told them they had cancer that you can’t cure or told a family that there loved one has died despite everything.
We as physicians should support our colleague in this because it is only by the grace of God it wasn’t us.
Mary Jane Reed,MD,FACS
I rise to give my friend and colleague a standing ovation.
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You are 100% correct.
Thanks for your insightful comments.