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EUTHANASIA.
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Discusses moral and ethical issues.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Discusses moral and ethical issues. Distinction between the moral and ethical applied to euthanasia. Identifies how morality and ethics often overlap. Concept of "active" and "passive" euthanasia. Voluntary euthanasia. Physician assisted death. Religious views. Ethical parameters of Humphrey and their relation to informed consent. Legal rulings.
Paper Introduction:
Moral and Ethical Concerns Regarding Euthanasia One of the more controversial issues that medical scientists, religious leaders, political officials and ordinary people confront is the question of whether euthanasia is morally and/or ethically right. “Euthanasia” is a broad term for “mercy killing,” or the taking of the life of a hopelessly ill or injured individual in order to end his or her suffering (Torr, 2000). This brief essay will first consider the distinction between the moral and ethical as they apply to euthanasia, and the identify how morality and ethics often overlap. The report will then offer an answer to the question of whether or not euthanasia is morally and ethically right.
Morality and ethics are often mistaken as synonymous. Morality, according to Webster (1994), encompasses the ability
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If the medicalprofession, the laws of the nation, and the opinion of the people in aspecific culture or society all combine to define an act as immoral, thenethical codes would require individuals and organizations to refrain fromsuch a practice. Theorists who concern themselves with these questions often considerthe degree to which the act of euthanasia is autonomous on the part of thepatient to be a critical determination of its moral or ethical status.Baird and Rosenbaum (1989) have suggested that physicians must recognizethat they are bound by law (a reflection of a society's moral values) andprofessional codes of ethics, the latter shaping their own actions asprofessionals, and the former determining what society will and will notconsider lawful. The word euthanasia, says Humphry (2 ), comes from the Greek - "eu,"meaning "good," and "thanatos," meaning "death." It literally means "gooddeath," though the word and the act have acquired a more complex meaning inmodern times. Administration of medication, oreven the mere participation in preparing a patient to self-administer amedication that has the potential to end life, is an active form ofeuthanasia. Ethically, the determination of whether suchan act is right or wrong would proceed from the specific set of moralprinciples that a society or other entity holds valid. Active assistance of suicide - as in the case of Dr.Jack Kevorkian's efforts to bring "death with dignity" to a growing numberof terminally ill individuals - is a more contentious moral and ethical (aswell as legal) matter. Editors. Whether an act is moral or not (and itspractice ethical) depends upon whether it can be supported by reasonswithin the framework of a set of moral assumptions, which themselves mustbe subject to critical appraisal. Many in the Western, Judeo-Christian world reject euthanasiaon moral groups, contending that it is a "wrongful" act under almost anyconceivable set of circumstances (Michigan Catholic Conference, 2 ;Sulmasy, 2 ). It was, for example, legal in Nazi Germany to slaughterJews, Gypsies, and others in concentration camps, but it can hardly beargued that these were moral acts. Webster's New World Dictionary. It is a difficult moral issue, according to Angell (2 ), because ofthe so-called slippery slope argument which asserts that once a societyembarks upon this kid of activity, it becomes all too easy to add in newsituations or cases in which human life becomes vulnerable to terminationat the hands of others. In Euthanasia. Currently, the laws of most states in the United Statesdo not permit physician-assisted suicide; Dr. Kevorkian has attempted toforce the courts to come to terms with this issue, but has not as yetsucceeded. San Diego: Greenhaven Press. Conversely,the Michigan Catholic Conference (2 ) has argued that euthanasia isimmoral and its practice unethical because it violates the biblicalinjunction against killing - the commandment that "Thou shall not kill."This view holds that dying is a part of living and that the moment of aperson's death should be under the control of humanity's creator, God.Euthanasia, as the destruction of God-given life, is a moral wrong; it isalso believed by those who oppose it to have the potential to open the doorto other crimes against life, especially against those who are chronicallyill or disabled. The person leaves a note voluntarily written explaining his/her choice and the reasons for this choice.These parameters, says Humphry (2 ), reflect the notion of "informedconsent," and also serve to demonstrate that a voluntary choice has beenmade by a competent, rational adult who has carefully considered his or heroptions. Spong, J.S. (1994). Michigan Catholic Conference. (2 ). TheMoral Issues. The ethical parameters identified by Humphry (2 ) are: 1. Spong (2 ), an Episcopal Bishop, does not believe that the Judeo-Christian moral code should be understood as preventing voluntaryeuthanasia in both active and passive form. The report will then offer an answer to the questionof whether or not euthanasia is morally and ethically right. In 1996, two federal courts, one in the NinthCircuit, in Washington, and the other, in the Second Circuit, serving NewYork, declared state laws against physician-assisted suicideunconstitutional. It refers to the character of being in accord with the principles orstandards of right conduct. Angell (2 ) has argued that voluntary or passive euthanasia is ameans of demonstrating Christina compassion. But they are also different: somethingmoral may not be legal, and something legal may not be moral (Baird &Rosenbaum, 1989). The euthanasia has not been carried out at the firstknowledge of a life-threatening illness, and reasonable medical help hasbeen sought to cure or slow down the terminal disease; 4. Baird, R.M. The person is a mature adult; 2. The person clearly has made a considered decision; 3. "Euthanasia" is a broad termfor "mercy killing," or the taking of the life of a hopelessly ill orinjured individual in order to end his or her suffering (Torr, 2 ). Voluntary euthanasia is ethical. This brief discussion should identify the distinction between themorality - or the inherent rightness or wrongfulness of an act - and ethics- the set of standards or codes of practice that proceed from definitionsand determinations of wrongfulness and rightness. The treating physician has been informed, asked to be involved, and his or her response taken into account; 5. References Angell, M. Voluntary euthanasia shows compassion for thedying. Moral and Ethical Concerns Regarding Euthanasia One ofthe more controversial issues that medical scientists, religious leaders,political officials and ordinary people confront is the question of whethereuthanasia is morally and/or ethically right. In the case of euthanasia, then, morality would refer to therightness or wrongfulness of ending the life of a hopelessly ill or injuredindividual (Humphry, 2 ). There are morally acceptable ways that the pain of deathor a terminal illness can be relieved, and these behaviors (such as thoseof pain management) should be understood as constituting ethical and moralmedical practice (Michigan Catholic Conference, 2 ; Sulmasy, 2 ). Morality and ethics are often mistaken as synonymous. Derek Humphry(2 ), who is a staunch advocate of both the morality and the ethics ofeuthanasia, argues that euthanasia is morally and ethically justified as ameans of ending or relieving unbearable suffering only so long as it islimited to fully informed adults who specifically and voluntarily requestit. Euthanasia. Morality,according to Webster (1994), encompasses the ability to make thedistinction between that which is wrong and that which is right in conduct. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 24-32. Torr, J.D. Consequently, having attributed a wrong character to theact of euthanasia, it becomes ethically inappropriate, improper, and"wrong" to allow it to be practiced. Life would end, generally in a state of physicalcomfort achieved by the use of analgesic preparations. It believes that the end ofintolerable suffering in the case of the terminally ill individual is anact of moral value and believes that the holiness of life is enhanced, andnot diminished, by letting people have a say in how they die. Theright to refuse treatment is similar, morally and ethically, to thedetermination to die. (1989). and Rosenbaum, S.E. Ethics are specific, for the most part, to a particular person, group,profession, or organization; it is socially centered and is the vehicle bymeans of which a set of moral standards are reinforced. InEuthanasia. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books. Living Wills now are used aslegal devices to protect the right of an individual who may becomeemotionally incompetent by means of a medical or other condition todetermine that certain kinds of medical treatment are to be withheld. Passive euthanasia, on the other hand, would be allowing apatient to die by withholding treatment, food, life-support technologies atthe patient's request. Voluntary euthanasia is unethical. In the case of euthanasia, say Baird and Rosenbaum(1989), it is also important to recognize that in addition to questions ofethics and morals, law is also involved. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 46-54. In sum, what emerges from thisdiscussion is the belief that voluntary euthanasia sought by a competent,rational, mature adult who has exhausted all medical remedies should bepermitted. (2 ). (2 ). Ethics, which Webster does subsume within thedefinition of morality, encapsulates a particular moral standard or system. Angell (2 ) considers assisted suicide as a"morally intermediate" act; the moral question asked in such situations iswhether the physician's act is passive, active, or intermediate. InEuthanasia. Euthanasia. (2 ). San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 4 -45. Euthanasia violatesChristian beliefs. In the case of theformer, a physician or other actor would deliberately undertake steps toend the life of a suffering individual. San Diego: Greenhaven Press,33-39. (2 ). Law and morality are intimatelylinked, with most laws representing a codification of conduct standardsthat proceed from moral standards. (2 ). Thisbrief essay will first consider the distinction between the moral andethical as they apply to euthanasia, and the identify how morality andethics often overlap. The Supreme Court reversed these decisions, leaving thequestion still very much unresolved. New York: Prentice Hall. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 17-23. Humphry, D. In Euthanasia. Sulmasy, D.P. Euthanasia does not violate Christian beliefs.In Euthanasia. The person has made "exit plans" that do not involve others in criminal liability or leave them with guilt; 7. Humphry (2 ) frames this debate within six ethical parameters.These are to be used to determine whether or not a specific act oreuthanasia, of the practice itself, constitutes a moral "right" and anethical behavior. Spong (2 ) suggests that one way of framing the question of whetheror not euthanasia is morally and ethically viable is to differentiatebetween what he calls "active" and "passive" euthanasia. The person has made a Will disposing of his/her worldly effects, demonstrating evidence of a tidy mind; 6.
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