Paralyzed Swedish man sues hospital for discussing donating his organs

[Hum]

A 43-year-old Swedish man is just about the luckiest man alive after narrowly surviving a plot to harvest his organs by doctors who thought he was done for.

The man?s name is Jimi Fritze and he was paralyzed by a stroke two years ago as he and his girlfriend were out at dinner on a small island off the coast of Sweden?s second largest city, Gothenburg.

Because of the remote location, it took a long time to get Fritze to hospital, by which time he was completely paralyzed.

?They looked at an X-ray of my brain, and when they had done that, they told my girlfriend that it wasn?t good and that I wouldn?t live,? Fritze told UK newspaper The Telegraph.

?I could hear her crying the whole time, but I couldn?t do anything.?

?I heard them tell my girlfriend and my relatives that there was no hope,? Fritze continued.

?I couldn?t do anything. I could only see and hear. I couldn?t move my body.?

As he lay in his bed, Fritze says he heard the doctors discussing the possibility of organ donation, in particular his liver and kidney.

?I was scared because I thought that I was going to die then, and a hard death,? he went on.

?I remember I thought, what will happen if they cremate me, will I see the fire and feel the fire??

Fritze believes he would have been declared brain dead, had it not been for a senior doctor who returned three days after his accident.

But after re-examining the X-ray, she immediately realized that there was a good chance Fritze would recover. Within days, he could nod his head, and now he can speak and move again, to a small degree, following extensive rehab.

source

[LaP]

wow crazy story. How can doctors discuss organ donation before being 100% sure the patient wont recover?

[Hum]

Sounds like a modern Obamacare hospital. :p

[Elliot B.]

"I remember I thought, what will happen if they cremate me, will I see the fire and feel the fire?"

 

Scary thought :/

[spacer]

Honestly, that scenario is one of my biggest fears. Being stuck in your own body and literally powerless to communicate has got to be one of the scariest feelings imaginable.

[MikeChipshop Member]

Come on, no one's really called "Jimmi Fritze" :p

 

The doctors could have discussed it in another room, however i see no reason to sue here.

 

Also, they don't just chuck you in the fire when they cremate a body, they first make sure you're dead through chemical means... 

[spacer]

Come on, no one's really called "Jimmi Fritze" :p

 

The doctors could have discussed it in another room, however i see no reason to sue here.

 

Also, they don't just chuck you in the fire when they cremate a body, they first make sure you're dead through chemical means... 

I think the bigger issue is: would they have really checked and exhausted all avenues to make sure he wasn't brain dead or had no chance of recovery before harvesting his organs?

 

By the sound of it, a few doctors did some tests, found out he might not make it, then stopped looking into it. A senior doctor coming back and getting the correct prognosis correct is proof enough to me that the other doctors were at fault for not doing their due diligence. Which is more than enough grounds to sue, in my opinion.

[techbeck]

Guy is just ###### he is paralyzed and wants the money to help him through life.  The Drs did nothing wrong.  Its not like they prepped him for surgery or cut in to him.  It was a discussion of a certain doctor thought after his evaluation.  Another later came in to review the patient, which is most likely procedure, and then made adjustments to the case.

 

And no, he would of of felt the fire.  The Drs knew he was still alive just not a good chance for recovery.  They would cremate/take organs out of your body if you still have a pulse.

[DocM]

Dunno about Sweden but in these parts ethics dictate such conversations take place outside of a potentially concious patients hearing until proper notification of family and notification of the patient (preferrably with familial presence & support) has occurred.

Another term for it is common f'ing courtesy.

[Lamp0]

Only in America.

[stevember]

I should sue my ex, she discussed what she was going to do with my organs several times.

[Guest]

Been living in Sweden for almost a year now. People here are very open and would discuss anything that comes on their mind, even such things that may seem dark to some. The doctors were exchanging thoughts about possibilities, considering his chance of recovery. The fact that he recovered is wonderful, but still, there was a high possibility that he would not recover. Don't see anything wrong in preparing for every outcome.

 

I do understand the guy, though.

[peacemf]

Dunno about Sweden but in these parts ethics dictate such conversations take place outside of a potentially concious patients hearing until proper notification of family and notification of the patient (preferrably with familial presence & support) has occurred.

Another term for it is common f'ing courtesy.

(Y)

 

although interestingly in Britain, it can also be done by closing the curtains around the bed and discussing it then, as for some reason people can't hear anything discussed behind paper thin curtains :rolleyes:

[Hum]

Maybe they should text message organ discussions.

[DocM]

Or just take it into and down the hall, without trying to match Ethel Merman's** volume.

** Stage singer you could hear in row ZZZ, with no sound system.

[Praetor]

Another term for it is common f'ing courtesy.

 

DocM says it all: it's courtesy and they failed at it; i imagine that someone vulnerable, frightened and paralised while hearing people that have the power to cut you open discussing organ donation is extremely scary.

 

To sue them? I don't think he has a case honestly. At most those doctors should learn to be better polite and exhaust all the hypotheses first before talking near the patient about organ donation.

Only in Sweden.

 

FTFY.