Nothing is ever more painful than the death of a loved one, but that of a pregnant woman may eventually change one of the staunchest abortion laws in the world.
A pregnant woman in her late twenties (she remained unnamed) suffered a very serious brain injury after a fall. Four days after she was admitted to the hospital, she was proclaimed brain dead by doctors. However, she remained in such condition for more than two weeks despite the plea of her family to spare them, especially her partner and two children, from more anguish. The doctors refused to do so as they're afraid of the legal implications, including murder and medical neglect.
This may be because of the strict abortion laws in Ireland. Under the 2013 Act on Protection of Life during Pregnancy, women may be allowed to undergo an abortion only if her pregnancy will endanger her life. This caused confusion among the doctors since the fetus of the brain-dead mother wasn't really the cause of her affliction.
Thus, the matter was brought to court, which later ruled that the mother should be removed from life support since the fetus, who was already on the 18th week, will no longer have any chance to survive.
The ruling was based on the accounts of more than 5 doctors who mentioned that the fetus can't last for two months more so he or she can be delivered safely from the mother. Because the mother was already brain dead and that her organs were no longer functioning the way they should, the environment the baby was in was already deemed toxic. Moreover, the woman was already receiving drugs that weren't ideal for pregnant women.
The family through their lawyer didn't contest the decision but only bid their sad farewell to the young mother.
Leo Varadkar, the country's health minister, mentions they will review their laws on abortion.
