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Anorexic Woman Can Be Fed Against Her Wishes, Rules The Irish High Court


By | Legal news aggregator at Loganizer

May 30, 2014

The Irish High Court has ruled that a 26-year-old Irish woman, weighing only 27 kg and at risk of irreversible liver damage caused by a severe anorexia nervosa can be force fed against her wishes.

The woman was hospitalized in late April as an involuntary patient, under the Mental Health Act, because she was refusing treatment and was losing weight at the rate of one kg a week, dropping to as low as 24.2 kg. She has already experienced severe problems with liver function and, according to her doctors, she needs to intake between 1.600 to 1.800 calories daily to achieve weight gain that would take her out of the danger zone.

She herself agreed to other feeding options, such as taking oral supplements and peg feeding, but the doctors believe that these methods would not be successful, due to her anorexia nervosa being at the most severe end, and that a feeding treatment that would involve her being fed through a nasogastric tube is the only way to save her life and health.

The doctors tried to apply the tube before turning to the court, but she had ripped it out. After that, on 19th May 2014, she was informed by her doctors that an application would be made to the High Court for force feeding, if she did not agree to an oral supplements feeding plan, which would enable her to receive 1.800 calories per day. However, on 23rd May 2014, it was revealed that she did not fully comply, so the doctors had no other resort but to apply to the court in the best interest of the patient, through the HSE.

The psychiatrist treating her stated that she doesn’t have the necessary mental capacity to appreciate the seriousness of her condition and to make reasonable decisions. She did not understand that she would die if she didn’t restore her weight and believed that the doctors were trying to overfeed her.

The patient was represented by the solicitor John Lucey SC, who stated that she was against the proposed treatment and that she believed she would survive by taking oral supplements. He also asked for a review by another psychiatrist.

Her parents, however, agreed with the necessity of ordering the force feeding.

The order for tube feeding, subject to regular review, was issued by Justice Nicholas Kearns, who has pointed out that this was not the first such case he heard. The order allows the doctors treating the woman to tube feed her and perform other medical procedures they deem necessary, including placing gloves on the patient’s hand, which would prevent her from ripping the tube off.


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