
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 25, 1990                   TAG: 9007250403
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A/8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN ONE IS `BRAIN-DEAD'

IN RESPONSE to the editorial July 3 about the "right to die" ruling, I ask:

Have those who made this ruling ever seen first-hand what's involved when a person is declared "brain-dead"?

When I was a nursing assistant at a local hospital, I witnessed this on many occasions. Physicians must take into consideration the results of at least two electroencephalograms. This test involves the recording of any brain activity. If the second reading shows no brain function, the physician discusses with the nearest relatives whether further mechanical support to sustain life will benefit the individual.

A neurologist or a neurosurgeon is highly trained to determine the results of an EEG and the benefits of mechanical support. Further, sustaining life mechanically does not guarantee an individual will live indefinitely.

I like to think that a decision by both the physician and family would suffice, not fatten the already bulging wallets of attorneys who draw up "The Living Will." What has happened to compassion in society; has it been overlooked in this so-called constitutional right? I believe it has.

ROBERT NEWCOMB\ SALEM

by CNB