Persistent Unconsciousness and the Use of Assisted Nutrition and Hydration: Medical and Moral Reflections

The subject of this article is the medical condition popularly known as the persistent vegetative state or PVS. Because, as many have noted, including Pope John Paul II in 2004, the term "vegetative" carries with it such pejorative connotations, I will try to avoid using it as much as possible and will substitute the term "persistent unconsciousness" in place of it. I have divided the subject into two main sections, the medical and the moral, with several smaller divisions in between. My intended purpose in this article is twofold. First, it will clarify several major lacunae in the popular knowledge of persistent unconsciousness itself, and second, it will examine some recent developments in the Church's moral teaching regarding the care of such patients. It is my hope that this approach will help to shed some light on the common misconceptions regarding persistent unconsciousness and to clearly present the Church's moral tradition as it serves to address the needs of these individuals.