What Caused the Patient's Death: Medical Negligence or Divine Decree? 5 Points to Consider

How Do Antibiotics Know Which Organ Needs Repairing?

Recently, I had an earache. The doctor at the health clinic determined that it was an ear infection and prescribed an antibiotic called "Augmentin". I asked him, "Is this a specific antibiotic for ear infections?"

The doctor did not understand my question...

I continued: "It's just that I recall having been prescribed this antibiotic in the past when I had a throat infection..." The doctor seemed bewildered by my inquiry. Seeing he was losing patience, I asked him directly: "How does the antibiotic know which part of the body needs fixing? It enters the body and is absorbed into the bloodstream, but how does it know where to go exactly? When does it turn right or left? Are there signposts or traffic lights in the body guiding it to the affected organ?"

"How does the active ingredient know which part of the body requires it without any delays or errors? How does the antibiotic recognize and destroy the pathogenic bacteria? Who tipped it off? How does the body direct the medicine to the inflammation sites, and how does it quickly expel the drug once its task is finished?"

The doctor began to stammer and then nonchalantly replied: "The body knows!"

But how? Have you ever thought about it?

Broken Telephone

You're familiar with the game "Broken Telephone", right?

It's a delightful childhood game where each participant whispers a phrase or sentence to the next player. The accumulative error often results in the final phrase being quite different from the original, much to the amusement of the players.

Note: This game actually takes place in real life. It's a "game" where a phrase has been successfully passed down in whispers across a vast number of participants, yet the last person says the original word accurately.

In the year 2448 from the creation of the world, on the sixth of Sivan – on Shabbat Kodesh – Hashem revealed Himself to the Israelites and gave us the Torah.

The Torah was passed down from generation to generation, from father to son. And today, over three thousand three hundred years later, Jews all over the world hold the very same Torah. They study it devotedly and observe its commandments meticulously, just as Moses taught the Israelites: the same square black tefillin, the same complex architecture of mikvahs, the same 39 principal types of labor forbidden on Shabbat, the same festivals, the same sukkah and four species, the same kosher animals, the same marriage rituals, the same complicated monetary laws, and more.

As if the event took place just yesterday, as if Moses recently embarked on a worldwide tour among Jews in Iraq and Persia, Morocco and Yemen, Poland, Hungary, and Russia, Holland and Switzerland, Spain and France, the United States and Canada, China and Japan, spreading the Torah and explaining how to uphold its details and commandments.

Throughout all these years of exile, Jews spread out across the globe without phones or the internet, with almost no communication, yet they still carried with them the thousands of laws – unchanged! In Yemen, the brit milah was observed exactly as it was in Poland. Jews everywhere upheld the exact same Torah!

It's astonishing how the Torah was preserved so precisely over such a long period by such a dispersed and persecuted people...The Creator of the universe and history, who gave the Torah, is the only one who could ensure that it is never forgotten by the Jewish people – and He kept His promise.

Support System for the Fetus

Carrying a small human being inside the body is miraculous. Pregnancy is a miracle. The fact that a small human grows inside the body, emerges after nine months into the world, becoming a separate entity, another person – it's nothing short of amazing. To enable this miraculous process, the woman's body undergoes changes that seem like science fiction, but are normal in any pregnancy. Here are some examples:

Blood volume doubles – From the early weeks of pregnancy, the woman's body begins increasing the amount of blood and plasma by 30-50 percent. The reason is that the heart of a pregnant woman works harder, but more efficiently. More blood is pumped from the heart to various body organs with each beat, ensuring the proper development and growth of the fetus.

The pelvis loosens – As the pregnancy progresses, the pregnant woman's body starts preparing for childbirth. One of the changes happening in the later stages of pregnancy is the loosening of the pelvic bones. This might seem strange or even frightening, but it's a positive and necessary process as it allows the pelvis to widen during birth, enabling the baby to pass through and be born safely.

The uterus expands tenfold – The role of the uterus is to provide a safe and supportive environment where the fetus can grow. Therefore, it can stretch and expand up to ten times its original size during pregnancy.

The body creates a new organ – the placenta: The placenta is formed and develops alongside the fetus, and its primary role is to facilitate metabolic exchange between the mother and the fetus.

There are many physiological processes that help nurture a small human within the body, and I ask: How does each organ know what to do perfectly to protect the lives of the fetus and the woman carrying it? Who is the "chemist" that told the blood to start producing more, enough for two people (and even more in the case of multiple fetuses)? Who is the "carpenter" that disassembles and perfectly reconstructs the pelvic bones? Who "stretches" the uterus exactly in accordance with the fetus size? Who "creates" the placenta anew each pregnancy and "sees" it expelled from the womb after childbirth?

Is it possible these miraculous processes, indicating a guiding hand, happened by themselves without a creator and planner?

"For Man Does Not Live by Bread Alone..."

If a person frequently eats a favorite food three times a day, what eventually happens? They'll soon tire of it and stop eating it.

It's safe to say that any food consumed in excess, even a beloved one, eventually becomes unappealing. As it’s written in Proverbs 25:16: "If you find honey, eat just enough—too much of it, and you will vomit." A sweet and delicious food like honey lures the eater to consume more, but overeating it eventually leads to nausea and vomiting.

However, pay attention to the kindness of the world's Creator: there is only one food that the body needs, and even if a person eats it three times a day, they will not tire of it. What is that food? Bread!

(Photo: shutterstock)

It's a wonder. All sweets and indulgences, if consumed too much, eventually become unbearable. But Hashem instilled in humans that bread is essential and is not a food of desire because the body needs this fuel, and even eaten three times a day - it doesn’t tire of it.

It's the same with water – necessary for the body and never tiresome. In contrast, anyone who drinks too much cola or coffee will eventually weary of them.

By the grace of the Creator, bread and water, the body's fuel, do not tire the human, even with "overuse".

"Poor Thing..."

Recently, a friend's father passed away. It happened after a year and a half of prolonged hospitalization due to a brain injury, which according to him, worsened due to medical negligence by the hospital staff.

During the shiva, the friend – who defines himself as an atheist – recounted stories of his late father, adding with great anger: "My dad suffered so much for a year and a half, he didn’t deserve it! The hospital was negligent and will pay for this!... My father should have lived many more years! And the people around nodded in agreement: "Poor thing, what he went through, he didn’t deserve this suffering..."

Why am I telling you this? Let me explain: His father died on that particular day because it was divinely decreed that he would leave this world that day. We need to understand, even without medical negligence, another event would have led to his death: a car accident, a fall from a roof, or just not waking up in the morning... In other words, he didn’t die because of the illness or medical negligence, he died because it was decreed.

The deceased isn't to be pitied: The deceased (or more accurately – his soul) returns to his Heavenly Father, where it’s best for him. Therefore, there’s no place to act with anger or express illogical grief. It might sound bizarre, but the suffering the deceased endured for a year and a half were tremendous cheseds from Hashem towards him, as atonement for his sins before his arrival in Heaven. The deceased, upon reaching Heaven, understands that this world is a corridor to the next and probably tells Hashem: "Why only a year and a half of suffering? Why not give me more?".

And most importantly – don't get angry! Even if the medical staff was negligent, there’s no reason to be angry or outraged at them. Why? Because Hashem orchestrated it! His head wouldn’t have been harmed unless Hashem decided it. Even when parting with a loved one, don’t mourn excessively; know that they have returned to their Father in Heaven, and it’s best for them there.

Wait, so why do we grieve the passing of someone if they immediately pass over to a better world? Because we miss them, and it’s hard for us to remain without them. Not necessarily because they suffer after death. Hashem understands this, thus in the "manufacturer's instructions" (the Torah) He provided us, among other things, the gift called "Shiva", enabling proper coping with loss.

We sometimes hear phrases like: "Poor thing, how he suffers" (health); "Poor thing, he was fired and has five children" (livelihood); "Poor thing, she's been single for many years"; and so on. We don’t realize that such expressions subtly challenge (unintentionally) Hashem's providence and guidance!

In conclusion, everything Hashem does is for our good, even if we don’t understand it!It cannot be that someone suffers a fraction more than what they deserve! And the truth is if we saw the full picture, we'd remain silent and joyful in suffering, which cleanses us from any blemish and merits us eternal life with Hashem...