IN THE NEWS - Death of Brain-Damaged Florida Woman Fuels Deb

IN THE NEWS - Death of Brain-Damaged Florida Woman Fuels Debate About End-of-Life Issues
By Jerilyn Watson

Broadcast: Saturday, April 02, 2005

I'm Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Americans are debating many questions related¹ to the death of Terri Schiavo. Treatment of the severely² brain-damaged woman has raised important questions about hopelessly sick and injured patients. Missus Schiavo was the center of a major medical and legal battle that even involved Congress³ and President Bush.

Missus Schiavo died Thursday in the state of Florida. She was forty-one years old. Her death came thirteen days after her feeding tube was disconnected. The tube was keeping her alive.

Terri Schiavo was among at least ten thousand Americans with conditions their doctors say are beyond hope. Examinations⁴ showed that important parts of Missus Schiavo's brain had been destroyed.

Fifteen years ago, Terri Schiavo suffered a heart attack at age twenty-six. Lack of oxygen damaged her brain. She was kept alive by a feeding tube. Since nineteen ninety, some doctors described Missus Schiavo as being in a persistent⁵ vegetative state. Patients in this condition cannot communicate, react, think or control their bodies. Some doctors said she had no chance of recovering.

 
Terri Schiavo
Terri Schiavo's husband took legal control of her care. In nineteen ninety-eight, Michael Schiavo took legal action to have her feeding tube removed. Mister⁶ Schiavo said his wife would not want to be kept alive in her condition.

Missus Schiavo's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, disagreed. They believed she wanted to live. Other doctors told them their daughter could be helped. For the past seven years, Terri Schiavo's husband and parents have argued in courts about whether to remove her feeding tube and permit her to die.

State and federal⁷ courts repeatedly⁸ agreed with Michael Schiavo. Florida lawmakers agreed with the parents. On March twenty-first, the United States Congress passed a measure to permit a federal court to re-consider the issue. President Bush cut short his vacation to return to Washington to sign the measure. But finally, a judge ordered the removal⁹ of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube.

Terri Schiavo's case has produced a huge amount of coverage¹⁰ in the media. It raises questions about the role of government in private family decisions. Many people opposed the involvement of Congress and the president in the case.

Americans are deeply divided about such intense¹¹ personal issues as when to end medical care. The case has caused Americans to consider questions about their own care at the end of life. Many people supported efforts to keep Terri Schiavo alive. However, other Americans feel strongly that they do not want to be kept alive if there is no chance for them to recover. Reports say many Americans are taking steps to let their families and doctors know what treatments they would or would not want at the end of life.

IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.

1 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

2 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

3 Congress   

n.(代表)大会；(C-:美国等国的)国会，议会

参考例句：

• There were some days to wait before the Congress.大会的召开还有几天时间。
• After 18 years in Congress,he intented to return to private life.在国会供职18年后，他打算告老还乡。

4 examinations   

n.检查( examination的名词复数 )；考试；考查；试题

参考例句：

• He had been forced to incriminate himself in cross-examinations. 他在盘问中被迫受到牵连。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Examinations are hanging over her head—that's why she can't sleep at nights. 她大脑里想的都是考试，所以晚上无法入睡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

6 mister   

n.(略作Mr.全称很少用于书面)先生

参考例句：

• Mister Smith is my good friend.史密斯先生是我的好朋友。
• He styled himself " Mister Clean ".他自称是“清廉先生”。

7 federal   

adj.联盟的；联邦的；(美国)联邦政府的

参考例句：

• Switzerland is a federal republic.瑞士是一个联邦共和国。
• The schools are screaming for federal aid.那些学校强烈要求联邦政府的援助。

8 repeatedly   

adv.重复地，再三地

参考例句：

• The loudspeakers blared the speech repeatedly.扬声器里反复大声地播送那篇演讲。
• He repeatedly beat his foot upon the floor.他反复用脚敲着地板。

9 removal   

n.去除，消除；挪走，移走，搬迁

参考例句：

• After the removal of the soup,fish was served.汤撤去后，鱼就上来了。
• The factory announced its removal to another town.这家工厂宣布迁往另一座城镇。

10 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

11 intense   

adj.认真的，专注的；强烈的；紧张的；热情的

参考例句：

• Susan was an intense young lady.苏珊是一个热情的年轻姑娘。
• The quarrel caused her intense unhappiness.争吵令她极其不快。