Mar 25, 2006 8:53 pm US/Eastern
Hospital That Treated Haleigh Defends Care
SPRINGFIELD (AP) ―
A top official at a Springfield hospital that treated 12-year-old Haleigh Poutre is defending the facility.
The defense comes after a governor's panel found Baystate's doctors responsible for initiating a premature order to remove Poutre from life support.
Poutre, who had been nearly beaten to death, later emerged from her vegetative state.
Dr. Loring Flint, senior vice president of medical affairs, said Baystate has an outstanding, compassionate pediatric unit.
He said the state Department of Social Services is ultimately responsible for seeking court approval to end the life of a child in its custody.
DSS Commissioner Harry Spence has said he sought an order to remove Poutre from life support only after two Baystate doctors said her condition was irreversible.
The doctors who testified in Poutre's case have declined to comment, citing patient confidentiality.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
