Milagros and the Media

Milagros may not have been able to get specialist treatment had Dr Rubio not intervened in her life. And Dr Rubio wouldn't have attracted such widespread press coverage had he not found a 'little mermaid' to rescue. In this sense, everyone has been a winner.

Having said that, there seems little doubt that Milagros will suffer the psychological consequences of her ordeal. It is enough for an infant to be subject to manifestly painful medical procedures, without the added trauma of sporadic enforced separations from her mother and frequent exposure to crowds of strangers wielding cameras and flashlights.

There are reports that she has been traumatised to the extent of losing her ability to form proper speech patterns, becoming nearly mute. Whether this is a physiological or a psychological problem isn't known.

When challenged on the necessity of media involvement, Rubio claims that it was his duty to expose Milagros to worldwide attention for three reasons: for the sake of spreading medical and scientific knowledge; to engender hope in others facing disability; and simply because she is such a rare case.

None of these reasons quite hold up to scrutiny. First, the spread of scientific knowledge is more easily undertaken via specialist medical journals, a route that has the added benefit of protecting patient identity.

Second, Milagros' story may breed hope in some generalised way but at what cost to her? In any case, there are so few living sirenomelia babies that it's doubtful she would be able to act as a role model in any real sense.

Third, Rubio cites the simple fact of Milagros' rarity which, he believes, deserves publicity in itself. This turns Milagros into nothing more than a sideshow freak; a medical curiosity exhibited as entertainment to rapt onlookers. Here it seems that Rubio may have hit upon a rather horrible human universal - a fascination for freaks.