A Georgia hospital declared Adriana Smith legally brain dead in February. She was nine weeks pregnant. Today, her body is being kept on life support to give the fetus she was carrying an opportunity to thrive. She is not breathing on her own. She can not speak or communicate in other way. Her condition is considered irreversible. She has been hospitalized for more than 90 days.
“Brain death, also commonly referred to as death by neurologic criteria, has been considered a legal definition of death for decades” and “although functions of many of the body’s organ systems can be artificially supported, the brain is the main control system governing vital bodily functions,” according to the Journal of Intensive Care.
The medical professionals charged with Smith’s care are unable to withdraw the breathing tubes from her body due to the potential impact on the fetus she is carrying, per the Associated Press. Their inaction has been credited to what some are calling a “fetal heartbeat bill.”
Smith sought assistance for a severe headache before being declared brain dead. She was sent home without scans that would have shown multiple blood clots on her brain. Her boyfriend found her in distress. She was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late for an effective intervention. The ineffectiveness of those tasked with her care reflects the type of systemic racial discrimination many Black women face.
Smith’s Mother, April Newkirk, dubbed this situation “preventable.” It has brought sadness and stress to their family, including Smith’s five-year-old son.
Traditionally, families are tasked with complete medical decision-making on behalf of incapacitated loved ones. Choices about whether or not to remove ventilators and other partially life-preserving measures are made by families daily.
This case is unique as Smith cannot advocate for herself, and her loved ones have been disempowered by these complicated legal measures. They were not given a choice. It raises questions about the role of family wishes in a climate where legislation plays a larger role than ever in healthcare decisions. Physicians have differing opinions on the ethical considerations associated with posthumous reproduction.
Smith’s mother commented on the distress she is experiencing with her daughter’s physical being continuing to be kept partially alive despite her lack of brain function in an interview with an affiliate of NBC News.
“It’s torture for me,” said Newkirk. “I see my daughter breathing, but she’s not there.”
“It should have been left up to the family,” Newkirk continued during her interview with the station. She revealed that the fetus has significant health issues, according to updates she received during an interview with local news outlet 11 Alive.
“He may be blind, may not be able to walk, may not be able to survive once he’s born,” Newkirk said. “This decision should’ve been left to us. Now we’re left wondering what kind of life he’ll have, and we’re going to be the ones raising him.”
She did not express her family’s wishes in either direction. She merely stated her feelings about not being allowed to make the choice on her daughter’s behalf. “I’m not saying that we would have chose to terminate her pregnancy, but what I’m saying is, we should have had a choice,” she added when speaking to the NBC affiliate.
Smith is now 21 weeks pregnant. There are reportedly plans to keep her on life support until she is at 32 weeks and the fetus can be delivered. Newkirk told 11 Alive that the process would lead to “More cost, more trauma, more questions.”
Georgia has one of the most restrictive reproductive health environments in the nation. “In 2019, Georgia House Bill 481 (HB 481) passed by a narrow margin, banning abortions upon detection of embryonic cardiac activity, as early as six weeks of gestation,” according to the Journal of Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters. The bill, signed into law by Governor Brian Kemp, was initially overturned by the Fulton County Superior Court. Later, following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court of Georgia permitted the controversial law to be reinstated.
Smith’s family is not only grieving the loss of the 30-year-old mother and nurse they loved. According to Newkirk’s NBC interview, they are also potentially incurring financial obligations associated with her sustained treatment by the hospital.
This case has become a lightning rod for grim discourse surrounding the impact of abortion bans on pregnant individuals and their families. Pundits, activists, and commentators have raised concerns about what a person being incapacitated means for their reproductive health.
It is not the first Georgia case to garner attention following the ban’s enactment. Social media mourned the life of another Georgia mother and medical professional named Amber Thurman in 2022. Thurman died after she was unable to gain access to reproductive care, according to reporting from ProPublica.
The American Journal of Public Health theorized that adverse healthcare outcomes could arise from delays in abortion care for those affected by Georgia’s stringent abortion regulations in 2015.
Other states, including Mississippi, South Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, West Virginia, and Kentucky, have similar austere approaches to reproductive healthcare access.
We can never forget Adriana Smith; she is more than a body.
Resources:
Journal of Intensive Care
Journal Racial Ethnic Health Disparities
AMA Journal of Ethics
Journal of Sexual and Reproductive Matters
ProPublica
American Journal of Public Health
