Reference no: EM132264935

Susie, a 14-year-old girl, was riding her bike home from a friend's when she was hit by a truck. Taken immediately to a hospital emergency room, she was put on life-support and treated aggressively for a severe head trauma. The neurologist called in to assist said she would have been killed instantly except for the helmet she was wearing. Three months later, Susie is in a deep coma, with a minimal response to sharp and intense pain. She is still in the hospital and there is no immediate prospect of transferring her to a skilled, long-term care facility. Her neurological prognosis is grave. She is on a ventilator and is receiving artificial nutrition and hydration. She shows the signs of pneumonia. Her mother has gone through a severe psychological reaction to the accident. After Susie is stabilized in a deep coma, her mother wanted treatment discontinued. Now she no longer comes to the hospital and refuses to talk with anyone about her. Susie's father insists on treatment, arguing that her use of the bicycle helmet, purchased the night before the accident, was a sign that she was meant to survive the accident. The neurologist recommends not treating the pneumonia and suggests taking her off artificial nutrition and hydration; in his judgment continued medical treatment is futile. You are the attending physician. What do you do?