The parents of a critically ill baby have lost a High Court life-support treatment fight.
Specialists say Indi Gregory is dying and hospital bosses had asked a judge to rule that medics could lawfully limit treatment.
Indi’s parents, Dean Gregory, 37, and Claire Staniforth, 35, from Ilkeston, Derbyshire, want life-support treatment to continue.
Mr Justice Peel ruled on Friday that medics could withdraw ‘invasive treatment’ for Indi, who has a rare mitochondrial disease – the same condition as baby Charlie Gard, who died in 2017.
Her parents and three older sisters have kept a vigil at Indi’s bedside at the Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, where the little girl, who has a number of complications including heart problems, is being treated.
A specialist said death was the ‘best option’ for the stricken seven-month-old – who has mitochondrial disease
Baby Indi has a rare mitochondrial disease – the same condition as baby Charlie Gard , who died in 2017
Indi’s father Dean Gregory (pictured) denounced medics for their ‘wrongly pessimistic and bleak’
‘We are there every day,’ Mr Gregory told the judge. ‘If I thought she was in pain, I would not be here arguing.
‘You have only got one life. You have to go through a little bit of pain to carry on with that life.’
He went on: ‘She has proved everyone wrong. I think she needs more time.’
Outside court, Mr Gregory said the hearing was ‘like a death sentence’ after Indi’s doctor said there was no hope.
The specialist, who cannot be named, said in the witness box: ‘We feel very sad. She is a little girl we have tried to treat to the best of our abilities. The terrible reality is that she is dying.
‘The best option for her is to show compassion, and we would want to treat her humanely and carefully, to treat any distress that occurs and…allow her to make as many memories as possible with her family’.
Last week the little girl was christened in her hospital bed, surrounded by her parents and her three older sisters. Pictured, baby Indi Gregory at her Christening.
After her breathing tube was removed, he estimated she could die within minutes, but also that she might survive days
Outside court, Mr Gregory said the hearing was ‘like a death sentence’ after Indi’s doctor said there was no hope. Indi pictured with her parents Dean and Claire Staniforth
Indi has three older sisters who have accompanied their parents on visits to her in hospital
After her breathing tube was removed, he estimated she could die within minutes, but also that she might survive days.
Mr Justice Peel has praised Indi’s parents as ‘dearly wanting to achieve the best they can for their daughter’.
Last week the little girl was christened in her hospital bed, surrounded by her parents and her three older sisters.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre which is supporting the family, said: ‘Life is the most precious gift we have. A truly compassionate society that cares for the most vulnerable in society just doesn’t do this.
‘It feels intolerable that Dean and his family are in this position. Indi Gregory should be given every chance to live, and her parents’ wishes must be respected and supported.’
Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk
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