[Olabisi Adekoya]

1. The small group of doctors made the decision to get together to talk about what they had seen over the course of the previous night. They were upset that the hospital administrator had declined the chance to extend the helicopter rescue on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and how difficult the night had been for the staff members who had stayed up to provide care for patients. Many felt discouraged, and some voiced complaints about how one doctor was being annoying and upsetting them. The group decided that they needed men and women of action and chose disobedience over inaction. Instead of waiting for the planned AM meeting to discuss options and plan a more organised rescue effort, they might re-triage the remaining patients. Everyone had to make the right choice that day in order for them to escape.
Susan Mulderick stepped up onto a curb at the official morning meeting with CEO Goux and medical chairman Deichmann. Hospital workers had gathered at the emergency department ramp for the discussion. Medical professionals interacted with one another while being jostled and silenced, as well as nursing managers and maintenance employees. The conversation moved in a straight line and was difficult to hear.

2.Dr. Deichmann took the stance that the issue shouldn’t even be explored because it is unlawful when euthanasia is brought up in an open discussion. He recalled telling Mulderick that he didn’t think we should be doing anything like that and that there was no reason to put anyone to death. The DNR patients were to be evacuated last, as he had anticipated, but that wasn’t the final plan.
Susan Mulderick wonders how the doctor could show more concern for a cat than for the people surrounding her. She remarked, “We are talking about euthanizing the animals, but not what we can do to help the patients.” Later, she recalled that her plan was to relieve the patients’ suffering and dull their senses so they wouldn’t notice that they could smell the faeces they were lying in or that panting dogs were weaving past and linking their hands.
Dr. Pou, Mulderick’s plan to medicate the patients found support in Dr. Pou; she believes Pou would know what to do to help with the patients; she expressed her thoughts to Pou and repeated her claim; however, they were discussing the euthanasia of the animals rather than what they could do to assist the patients. Later, she recalled Pou’s statement that there was nothing more to be done for the men and women who were lying in front of her than to attempt to make them comfortable because they were similar to many of her cancer patients. Pou added that, even though she wasn’t sure what to give the patients, she would use pain medication to do that.
Mulderick had known Dr. Cook for 20 years; she trusted him to know what to give them, and she was aware of his willingness to order medications to ease suffering because he was a firm believer in providing comfort to terminally ill patients. Concerning what to provide the patients, she requests that Cook consult with Pou. When Cook instructed Pou on how to give a mixture of morphine and a benzodiazepine sedative, he was instructing her on how to assist the patients in passing away while they were asleep.
My opinion: Mulderick was dissatisfied with the state of the patients who were left without care; by euthanizing the animals, they are led to feel that they can do the same for the patients rather than causing them pain. Sometimes it is preferable to gently remove patients from a bad circumstance rather than subjecting them to torture. The alternative to torture is euthanasia.

3. When Mulderick smelled worse in the second-floor lobby, a conflict between caring for pets and caring for people became apparent. The smell of faeces was strong, even with the smashed windows. She felt that nobody, especially not those who were vulnerable, should have to deal with such circumstances. Dr. Fournier’s concern for her sick and suffering cat, which was no longer eating or drinking, caused her frustration. Mulderick was incensed to witness them caring for animals close by, where the sickest patients were lying, while neglecting to inquire about what they could be doing to help the people.
Yes, some of the staff members were worried about the patients and wanted to think about it since they saw it as a way to relieve the patients from a dreadful position. They also thought that the patients deserved to feel comfortable.
Later boats allowed the evacuation of animals, rendering the earlier fatalities needless after they were allowed to do so, but it was too late for many. Euthanizing them had not been necessary after all.

4. In particular, Rodney Scott, who was able to successfully airlift alive, made me feel happy and delighted about the last of the patients who left the monument loading onto the aircraft.

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