WITHDRAWING TREATMENT FROM PATIENTS IN A PERSISTENT VEGETATIVE STATE

Medical opinion was unanimous that English youth Anthony Bland was in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of improvement or recovery. His family agreed that withdrawal of life support was appropriate, bu t Anthony's case went to the House of Lords for clarification of the l egal position before any action was taken by his doctors. The court ap plied the Bolam test - that a regimen is legally acceptable if support ed by a body of competent medical opinion, a principle specifically re jected by the High Court of Australia in Rogers v. Whitaker.(1)