What if it was yours?
It always strikes me as disturbing how fierce arguments over the right time to let unborn babies live and the need to let premature babies die coincide at around 23 or 24 weeks.
Where termination is concerned, a 24-week old baby is considered too far developed to have its life snuffed out. At the same stage a premature baby is, apparently, too expensive to be allowed to live.
The BBC2 documentary 23 Weeks: The Price Of Life examined the arguments for leaving babies born at 23 weeks to pass away without resuscitation or medical intervention.
Behind the arguments effectively to bin life at its early stages is, of course, money.
The price of life is seemingly too high for the liking of some highly-paid NHS officials – like Dr Daphne Austin, for instance.
Doctor Austin, an adviser to local health trusts, says keeping early babies alive is only prolonging their agony.
Funds would be better spent on care for cancer sufferers or the disabled.
This concerning film did much to promote and support Dr Austin’s arguments – a bit of a worry in itself – which were anchored in cash.
She said the NHS was spending around £10m a year resuscitating babies born early and keeping them alive in incubators and on ventilators.
But despite round-the-clock care from teams of experienced doctors and nurses, just nine per cent left hospital – the rest died. And only one in 100 would grow up without some form of disability – the most common including blindness, deafness and cerebral palsy.
One in 100. Is that one baby worth the expense and effort required for a fight for life?
It most definitely is, if it’s your baby.
First published at 08:57, Saturday, 12 March 2011
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk
Anne Pickles
Prem2Pram - Premature Baby Blog 
Mar 12, 2011 @ 14:25:41
That is disgusting! How can someone be so vile and cold to do that!!!!!!
I pay my taxes and I expect every human being to be cared for as they need to specially babies… no matter how old, if they are strong enough to be born alive then they are strong enough to try and live! Give them a chance to!!!
Arrrrgh these people make me soooo ANGRY!
Thanks for sharing this, I don’t get much time to watch tv so miss these things.
Monica x
Mar 13, 2011 @ 04:40:57
I am a Mother of a 30 week premature infant who has spent much time out of the NICU creating a journal and keepsake for parents touched by prematurity. I have published three editions to this preemie baby book which provides fill-in pages, journaling and medical resources. Our journal is available on Amazon.com and is truly providing parents a companionship throughout their NICU stay.
I am in the process of re-publishing our first edition and will be including multiple pages that outline foundations, organizations and websites that are supportive to parents. I would like permission to include you in our resource section and highlight the benefits of your website.
If you would consider being a part of this endeavor, please email me back with any artwork or verbiage that you wish me to use in your page space. I will be able to provide you with a proof of the work and again with your permission would publish to Amazon.
I anticipate that within the next 3-4 weeks the journal will be in full publication on Amazon. Your support is greatly appreciated.
To locate our NICU Companion Journal on Amazon, follow this link::
If you would like to consider carrying our journal or highlighting it’s benefits on your website, please send back an email with that request. We are always honored to be noted by other foundations and organizations, and will include any artwork that you may need for that purpose.