Family’s fight to save 23-year-old student from ‘cruel’ NYC hospital trying to take her off life support
The family of a New York City college student left comatose after brain surgery is fighting to stop a hospital from taking the young woman off life support.
Amber Ebanks, 23, a business student at Monroe College, suffered an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) rupture back in February, according to the family GoFundMe.
She went in for a scheduled surgery at Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx to stop the bleeding on July 30 but suffered a major stroke during the operation and was put into a medically induced coma.
The hospital declared her brain dead and wanted to pull the plug, but the Ebanks family is fighting in civil court to keep her on life support until she can be transferred to a care facility.
‘They [Montefiore Hospital] are some of the cruelest people I have ever known,’ her sister Kay Ebanks told ABC 13.
Amber suffered an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) rupture back in February and went in for a scheduled surgery to embolize the vessel that was bleeding on July 30
Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx declared her brain dead, but the Embanks family is in a legal battle to stop them from pulling the plug
‘She was perfectly fine and it’s unbelievable the condition she is in right now and they to take her off the life support in not even a month.’
The family’s attorney Chauncey Henry told DailyMail.com they have been able to obtain a temporary restraining against the hospital to keep Amber on life support.
After Amber suffered the AVM rupture, she was able to return to life as normal. She drove herself to the scheduled surgery and recorded advice doctors gave her.
AVMs are abnormal tangles of blood vessels which can cause irregular connections between the arteries and veins – which often develop in the spinal cord and brain.
Amber’s surgery was planned to embolize the vessel – a medical procedure designed to prevent or stop hemorrhaging.
They family said they have not been given a reason as to why the hospital was so eager to end Amber’s care.
‘When you have someone who hasn’t woken up yet, how can you decide that?’ Henry said.
‘When it comes to brain injuries, time is needed. There shouldn’t be a rush to judgement.
Amber Ebanks, 23, is a business student at Monroe College and was put on life support after brain surgery left her comatose
The family has been able to obtain a temporary restraining against Montefiore (pictured) to keep Amber on life support
‘Like any muscle the brain takes time to heal, it’s only been three weeks.’
Amber’s father lives in Jamaica – where Amber is from – and is currently trying to obtain a visa to come see his daughter.
New Beginnings, a Long Island care facility, has agreed to take over Amber’s care.
‘Everybody needs hope. You can’t just give up. Can’t just take them off life support when she needs more time,’ New Beginnings Founder Allyson Scerri told the local news station.
DailyMail.com reached out to Montefiore Hospital for comment. A spokesman told ABC13 it could not comment due to patient privacy laws.