There are numerous quotes about being in a “coma” scattered throughout Hollywood movies.

“Paralyzes him, puts him in a coma, then keeps him alive. Now what the hell is that?

 Alien

“Her heart. Can you give her something? – She’ll go into a coma.”

Exorcist

“Unless they’re completely supplied with lysine by us, they slip into a coma and die.”

 Jurassic Park

“He’s in a coma. – Then bring him out of it. I want to talk. Now, doctor.”

 Green Hornet

“When he arrived here, he was very ill, in a coma, not likely to live. And yet in a matter of ten days, his body is fully recovered.”

 36^th Chamber of Shaolin

“We don’t know what the hell to do at this point. So, let’s put her in a medically induced coma and tube feed until she gains 20 pounds. That should fix things right up!”

 The Marx Brothers in Medical School [Ok, not a real movie.]

Apparently, in the UK, a recent Telegraph investigation revealed that NHS hospitals authorized at least six young women with anorexia to be placed into comas in order to restore their weight.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14503651/Anorexic-girls-coma-NHS-hospitals-force-feed.html

Doctors attempt to argue that this hair-brained plan … err, I mean, that intervention is necessary to prevent death. However, reputable professionals and specialists caution it is a high-risk intervention with no medical precedent and that safer, evidence-based alternatives exist.

Before jumping into this fray, I should note that about three years ago when a previously untested and untried end of life option which shall not be named (thank you Harry Potter) [but, it rhymes with “Perminal Plannoplexia!]

was brought into the public consciousness, I went full blown nuclear from day one, filed ethics and board complaints and was considered (by some) very ugly in published articles.

Well, I learned my lesson. This time I am going to be more measured. More reasoned. More compassionate. Kinder, Gentler …

Before we delve into this latest Marx Brothers like Clown Show, let’s review the numerous criticisms of NHS hospitals in the UK.

A health ombudsman in the UK made the following remarks about the treatment of eating disorders in NHS facilities:

“Urgent action is needed to prevent people dying from eating disorders, the parliamentary and health service ombudsman for England has warned, as he said those affected are being “repeatedly failed”.

“The NHS needs a “complete culture change” in how it approaches the condition, while ministers must make it a “key priority.”

“Little progress has been made since the publication of a devastating report in 2017, which highlighted “serious failings” in eating disorder services.”

“Lives continue to be lost because of “the lack of parity between child and adult services”, and “poor coordination” between NHS staff involved in treating patients. There remain issues with the training of medical professionals.”

“Eating disorders are enormously complex, and those on the frontline treating people have a tremendously difficult job to do. This [is] not helped by a lack of a sense of urgency to address the scale of the problem. Clinicians need better support to do their job of protecting patients.”

“It is heartbreaking to see repeated mistakes and tragedies happening again and again. We need to see a complete culture change within the NHS, where there is a willingness to learn from mistakes.”

“The government also needs to fulfil its promise to treat eating disorders as a key priority so that we can see meaningful change in this area and make sure patients receive the quality of care they deserve.”

Tom Quinn, the director of external affairs at Beat, an eating disorders charity, said it was “appalling” that vulnerable patients were not getting the treatment that they desperately need.

NHS figures evidence the number of children being treated for eating disorders more than doubled from 5,240 in 2016-17 to 11,800 in 2022-23.

Doctors and charities warn limited access to community services means both children and adult patients are not able to access treatment quickly enough, which has led to many becoming so ill that they need urgent hospital care.

Ok, I think we got it.

A lack of urgency. Governmental ambivalence. Not learning from past mistakes.  Repeated tragedies. Lack of support. Poor coordination. Insufficient training of professionals. Little progress addressing past serious failings. Exploding number of eating disorder patients. Limited access to care.

And the NHS’ solution is … let’s put “em in a coma!” Blimey! And Bob’s your Uncle!

Cue the Benny Hill yakety sax music …

Let’s put the patients “on ice,” tube feed them until they gain 20 pounds, have Prince Charming come along to give them “love’s first kiss to wake them up,” [No wait… Prince Charming was a creepy stalker!]. Ok, A rebellious, hoody wearing bandit named Jonathon comes along, kisses Snow Woke, she wakes up from her coma and along with his bandit friends, they storm the Bastille and live happily ever after. Back to reality now.

A medically induced coma …

Being placed in a coma and hopefully waking up with no resulting physical harm is wrought with peril. There is the increased risk of lung infection. The possibility of damaged lung tissue. Blood clots could develop in the legs possibly leading to a pulmonary embolism. Muscle breakdown and nerve damage. Possible memory loss and seizures. Weakened immune system. Dangerously low blood pressure. And of course… death.

Medically induced comas are too high risk for psychiatric treatment and are reserved for brain protection in life-threatening cases.

One can’t help but wonder if the NHS doctors in the UK first attempted rTMS. Or a ketamine regiment. Or Deep brain stimulation. Or responsive neurostimulation.  The facts indicate otherwise.

In 2024, the NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre reported that it completed its first clinical trial of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to the prefrontal cortex in patients with severe enduring anorexia nervosa.

Last year. The first clinical trial of rTMS… 2024.

Ketamine? Yeah… No.

On April 4, 2024, it was reported that King’s College researchers were awarded £1.45 million from the MRC Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme to run a randomised controlled feasibility trial of oral ketamine vs placebo in people with both anorexia nervosa and treatment resistant depression, marking the first time that ketamine has been used in a trial of this kind.

Last year. The first clinical trial of ketamine … 2024.

Seeing how according to the literature, rTMS and ketamine were not clinically trialed until 2024, it is very unlikely that these treatment regiments were first attempted.

And so instead, the NHS solution was to put these young women into a coma and then tube feed them.  One can’t help but wonder if they first at least tried leeches or attempted to bleed the bad humours out of their blood. Trepanation? Tobacco smoke enemas?

There is certainly enough medical literature detailing the use of forward thinking medical treatment for anorexia nervosa. Were these treatments even first considered?  Were they utilized? [from the UK literature, that would be highly unlikely.] I think we all know the answers to those questions.

Instead, we are left once again with the reality that universally we do not know nearly enough about eating disorders. Globally, medical providers have not found a way, nor the ability to collaborate, share knowledge, consult with professionals from different backgrounds and countries and to come to the realization that collective knowledge exceeds individual knowledge.

Which results in medieval type, untested and untried experimentation on guinea pigs. Except they aren’t guinea pigs. They are our loved ones.

Loved ones being treated by Groucho, Chico and Harpo.

We deserve better.