From the Cambridge (UK) Evening News comes an interview with a mother of two who has cerebral palsy. Speaking about the matter of Katie Thorpe, Debbie Carter said she believes allowing a mother to mandate a hysterectomy for her nonverbal daughter could set a dangerous precedent.

The 50-year-old magazine editor from Little Downham, said: “It seems to me that the mother who wants her daughter to have a hysterectomy is probably doing it more for her own benefit.

“Being a carer of a severely disabled person is not easy, and my heart goes out to the mother, but does she have the right to say her daughter definitely can’t have any future life? I don’t know the full level of her disability, but she may meet someone in the future, form a relationship, and they could have children.

“If legal consent is granted how many other people will follow suit because it’s an easy way of looking after someone who is severely disabled?”

“Rather than taking such drastic action I think the medical profession should be more supportive in helping this girl as she goes through puberty. Surely they could give her support when she starts her periods, or control them with drugs. There must be another way to stop her bleeding which is not as drastic as a hysterectomy.”

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 11th, 2007 at 8:36 am and is filed under caregivers, cerebral palsy, medicine, parents. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.