The Role Displayed by Quality of Life Issues in Medical Decisions Jahi McMath is a 13-year-old girl living in Oakland, California, who is was declared brain dead by several neurologists. compared to three months ago. Jahi was declared brain dead on Dec. 12 due to barriers during surgery a few days earlier to remove her tonsils, adenoids and uvula at Children's Hospital & Research Center in Oakland. At least three neurologists confirmed that Jahi was unable to breathe on her own, had no blood flow to her brain and had no signs of electrical activity in her brain. Additionally, a court order kept Jahi's body on a ventilator while independent experts could be called in to confirm the findings (Wells, 2014). Even so, the McMath family managed to secure the release of Jahi's body through the county coroner, who issued a death certificate, and have since kept her on a ventilator in an undisclosed facility. All of this occurred after the children's hospital released Jahi due to her severe brain damage along with the likelihood that the hospital would profit from releasing Jahi before she or her family was ready for her release (Johnson and Rhodes , 2010, p. 61). Jahi's family has experienced limited resources and limited options, yet quality of life has a strong influence on the medical decisions made by the family. According to Johnson and Rhodes (2010), quality of life (QOL) is a major goal of the hospice movement (p. 64). It is known as the general well-being of individuals and societies. This includes fields of international development, healthcare and politics. Consideration of quality of life in making medical decisions regarding health care may result in judgments about the value of life and that ... middle of paper ... without quality and without change. Therefore, quality of life should be an essential feature when resources are limited or abundant, giving the patient and/or his family the opportunity to decide for themselves what measures should be taken. Bibliography Cella, D.F. (1995). Measuring quality of life in palliative care. Semin Oncol 22(2 Suppl 3), 73-81.Johnson, M. M. & Rhodes, R. (2010). Human behavior and the broader social environment: A new synthesis (2nd ed.). Boston: Pearson.Pearlman, R. A. & Jonsen, A. (1985). The use of quality of life considerations in medical decision making. J AM Geriatr Sociology, 33(5), 344-352.Wells, J. (2014, March 28). The mother of brain-dead Jahi McMath says her daughter is "still sleeping." Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-brain-dead-jahi-mcmath-mother-speaks-20140328,0,2928305.story#axzz2xhw11joF