Some stunned, others affirmed by papal comments on feeding tubes

Published: 2004-04-08

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Although some see Pope John Paul II's message at a recent Vatican conference as closing the book on the question of whether nutrition and hydration may be withdrawn from patients in a persistent vegetative state, others in U.S. Catholic health care circles think resolution of the issue still remains elusive. "The administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act," the pope said in a March 20 talk to more than 350 physicians and medical ethicists from 42 countries. Some U.S. ethicists and hospital administrators have called the papal talk "a stunner, to say the least" and "a disaster" with the potential "to create a lot of chaos for both patients and Catholic institutions." Father Michael D. Place, president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, responded more cautiously, saying in a statement that Pope John Paul's speech "affirms the church and the Catholic health ministry's abiding commitment to the inviolable dignity of human persons no matter their physical or medical condition" and "reminds us of our responsibility never to abandon the sick or dying."

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