A Polish man who had remained in a vegetative state at Plymouth Hospital since November 2020 has died - the man’s family confirmed on Tuesday. The matter of him being connected to life supporting equipment and being fed was the subject of a court dispute, and Polish authorities tried to save him by granting him a diplomatic passport and bringing him back to the country.

Mr Sławek has died… There are no words for all of this… May the Lord rest his soul; have mercy on his tormented body

— wrote Professor Krystyna Pawłowicz, a Constitutional Tribunal judge, on Twitter.

A middle-aged man who had lived in England for several years suffered cardiac arrest for at least 45 minutes, resulting in severe and permanent brain damage, according to the hospital. As a result, the Plymouth hospital applied to the court for permission to disconnect the life support equipment, to which the man’s wife and children, who live in England, agreed. The man’s sister and mother, who both live in Poland, were against the decision.

The court also denied permission to transport the patient to Poland, on the grounds that this would involve a high risk of death during transport, which would be more derogatory to the man’s dignity than disconnecting the apparatus.

The life support system was therefore disconnected for the fourth time. This time for good.

READ MORE: What more can be done to save the Pole? Here’s an idea: let’s give him the status of a diplomatic representative of the Republic of Poland

We are making an earnest appeal to transfer to our country a compatriot who is currently staying in Great Britain after suffering a brain injury

Tłum.K.J.