Update on ‘Baby Joseph’

Joseph Maraachli, dubbed “Baby Joseph” by the media, is making a good recovery after receiving a tracheotomy at SSM Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri. (from eCanadaNow)

The procedure was performed as an important first step in transitioning the 1-year-old to a nursing facility, before allowing him to return home to Windsor, Ontario with his parents, Moe and Sana Maraachli, for his final days. He is scheduled to have the tube changed in the coming week.

Baby Joseph first made news earlier this month when a Canadian hospital denied treatment, and decided to remove the infant’s breathing tube.

The child suffers from Leigh Syndrome, a rare genetic neurometabolic disorder, and had been at the hospital in London, Ontario since October 2010.

Doctors at the [Ontario] hospital had determined that due to the low prognosis of recovering from the deteriorating condition, he did not warrant further treatment.

Pardon my cynicism, but I think perhaps it had more to do with the high cost of his treatment. And possibly that heady feeling you get when, backed by the legal system, you hold not only the power of life and death in your hands, but the ability to thwart the wishes of anyone with the audacity to question your judgment. There’s an old joke about doctors, but it could just as easily be applied to “health care” bureaucrats, judges and lawyers: What’s the difference between God and a doctor? Answer: God knows he’s not a doctor.

The Maraachli family now hopes to take Joseph home to die in peace and privacy. One hesitates to call it a happy ending; how can you when you’re talking about a terminally ill infant? But the family is satisfied with the situation as it currently stands.

Moe Maraachli, Joseph’s father, said in response to this week’s events: “It’s a miracle. My son now has freedom. I’m very happy. My wife and I will respect the second opinion from the hospital in St. Louis. We will accept it with all my heart because Joseph got his human right to get a chance to get a second opinion. When God wants to take his life He’ll take it and nobody can say ‘No’ to God.”

Well, one hospital board in Ontario gave it their best shot.