Quebec appeals court to rule on removing comatose boy's breathing tube

The Montreal lawyer for the family of a five-year-old child who has been in a coma for more than six months was in court on Monday morning appealing a decision allowing a pediatric hospital to permanently remove the boy's breathing tube.

The boy has been in a patient at Ste-Justine Hospital since June 12 after being found at the bottom of the family pool.

"It's not a debate about whether or not to take off the ventilation. It's a debate about what happens once the ventilation is taken off," the parents' lawyer Patrick Menard told CTV News in an interview.

"It has always been their wish that their child be taken off ventilation, but taken off ventilation in a context where all winning conditions will be put on their side," the lawyer explained.

For the family that means receiving assurances that if the child's condition deteriorates following extubation that the hospital will reintubate if necessary and do "everything medically possible…to maximize the chances of survival of their son," said Menard.

However, doctors say the child should receive end-of-life care in case he stops being able to breathe without assistance, the hospital maintained during the trial before a Superior Court judge on Nov. 4.

The court documents state that the child's 20-minute immersion in the pool caused “anoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, which put him in a deep coma and caused major and permanent brain damage due to prolonged oxygen deprivation.” The two MRIs performed in June and July confirmed “the extent and permanence of the damage.”

Menard said the family is fully aware of the severity of their son's medical condition and is willing to adjust its lifestyle to accommodate his disability and his needs.

"They're not in denial with respect to that," said Menard, but disagree about the level of care their child should receive.

It could take days or weeks, he said, before the Court of Appeal of Quebec renders its decision.

The hospital will not remove the breathing tube until there is a judgment.

To his knowledge, it's the first time a case involving this specific debate has been argued in Quebec, said Menard.

"In Quebec, it's a first where a hospital wants to commit a medical act that has the risk of leading to a child's death against the wish of the parents," he said.

With files from The Canadian Press