The Bioethics Of Prolonging Life Of The Terminally Ill

The Bioethics of Prolonging Life of the Terminal Ill Prolonging life of the terminally ill is a bioethical decision. Bioethics is the study of controversial ethical issues that have come about due to advances in biology, medicine, and technology. Some think it is a simple decision on whether to let the pacemaker run or turn off, while others agree that it is a much harder decision than that. The decision of prolonging life comes with medical, moral, financial and legal obstacles (Butler 2013). Making health decisions is a big part of one’s life. These decisions can affect the happiness and well being of a person. Along with these many difficult decisions come challenges and obstacles. The first major challenge when deciding whether to prolong life is the question of will this help or cure the illness? Sometimes continuing life this way will only make suffering longer. In some cases, it is not as good as it sounds because of the side effects that come along with this decision. One side effect is that prolonging life can disrupt a person s quality of life. Christiaan Barnard says that, â€Å" I have learned from my life in medicine that death is not always an enemy. Often it is a medical treatment. Often it achieves what medicine cannot achieve-it stops suffering† (Jones p.1). Although, there are cons to prolonging life there are also pros. When a patient is having their life prolonged, their health might end up returning to its normal state or an even better state.Show MoreRelatedProlonging Life Of The Terminally Ill1261 Words   |  6 PagesProlonging life of the terminally ill is a bioethical decision. Bioethics is the study of controversial ethic al issues that have come about due to advances in biology, medicine, and technology. Some think it is a simple decision on whether to let the pacemaker run or turn off, while others agree that it is a much harder decision than that. The decision of prolonging life comes with medical, moral, financial and legal obstacles (Butler 2013). Making health decisions is a big part of one’s lifeRead MoreEssay about Pro Legalization of Euthanasia1915 Words   |  8 Pagesbrainwaves showing, fed by a machine, â€Å"breathing† with the help of a machine and not let them be liberated from their pain? Prolonging one’s suffering when an easier, more painless way out is possible is not â€Å"the right thing to do†. Giving the person the choice of release is. Euthanasia is. What is euthanasia? The basic definition of euthanasia is the practice of ending a life so as to release an individual from a painful, incurable disease or intolerable suffering. There are said to be two typesRead MoreEuthanasia Should Be Carried Out On Sick Patients3828 Words   |  16 Pageswether life supporting equipments should be withdrawn for such patients has continued to elicit debate. There are those who believe that all measures should be taken to ensure patients have been alleviated from pain. Proponents of euthanasia argue that patients in pain should not be left to continue suffering, and that doctors have a role to ensure they do everything possible to terminate the suffering. On a similar platform, proponents of euthanasia also believe that treatment to sustain life can alsoRead MoreEuthanasia Essay : Euthanasia And Assisted Suicide910 Words   |  4 Pagesgets across is whether or not medical advances have benefited civilization by prolonging their life expectan cy, or has caused individuals to be forced to live longer than necessary or comfortable. It questions the way criminal laws and moral views prevent someone in an unreliable condition to have a dignified death. The author, Professor Hazel Biggs, is head of the Law School and Professor of Healthcare Law and Bioethics and co-director of HEAL (the Centre for Health Ethnics and Law) at the UniversityRead MoreEssay on Death with Dignity2557 Words   |  11 Pagesï » ¿ Autonomy is a fundamental right. Liberty interests of patients while coping with terminal illness, however, unlike autonomy, are protected under the Constitution as fundamental rights. Advancements in medicine are extending the average life expectancy for adults. The aging of the baby boomer generation is also contributing to the increase in the growing number of the elder population. As society ages, not only do individuals battle terminal illness, but they combat the unanticipated demandsRead More Argument in Favor of Euthanasia Essay2098 Words   |  9 Pagesthe morality and legality of voluntary euthanasia has been a phenomenon since the second half of the 20th century. The ancient Greeks and Romans did not believe that life needed to be preserved at any cost and were tolerant of suicide in cases where no relief could be offered to the dying or when a person no longer cared for their life (Young). In the 4th century BC, the Hippocratic Oath was written by Hippocrates, the fa ther of medicine. One part of the Oath states, â€Å"I will not give a lethal drugRead MoreThe Controversy of Physician-Assisted Suicide2574 Words   |  10 PagesMoreover, when a person has been diagnosed as terminally ill and has reached a point in his or her life where the pain needs to be continually drowned in morphine and there is a vacuum in terms of ones sense of self, who is to say that person does not have a right to take steps necessary to end life? Therein lies the root of the controversy: modern medicine has invented countless remedies for disease and doctors and nurses take oaths to sustain life, but when individuals are in dire physical straitsRead MoreEuthanasi A Debate Of Morals, Ethics And The Value Of Human Life2388 Words   |  10 Pagesmorals, ethics and the value of human life. Those against euthanasia focus on the word killing, but it is the person doing it to themselves and not someone else especially someone out of vengeance or criminal act. For some it is even a religious stance and say it is God’s will and only he shall decide when someone dies. More importantly those against it fail to see it is about an individual who is terminally ill should have the right to end their own life. Those against euthanasia argue that legalizingRead MoreThe Ethics Of An Physician Assisted Suicide2729 Words   |  11 PagesWhat is bioethics? According to Michigan State University, School of Medicine, it is defined as an activity that is shared, reflective, examination of ethical issues in healthcare, health science and health policy. It is the discussion of the information that should be given to the patient and the patients right to refuse or accept that information. It involves doctors and patients but scientists and politicians and the general public. It has brought significant change but also raises new questionsRead More Medicine, Metaphysics and Morals Essays2986 Words   |  12 PagesMoral decisions concerning what ought to be done always assume metaphysical presuppositions concerning the way the world is. In the field of biomedical ethics, some of the metaphysical presuppositions underlying many current discussions of issues of life and death seem particularly implausible. These include our assumption of the reality of social atomism and our beliefs relating to the possibility of autonomy. Given the implausibility of these two assumptions, many discussions have focused our attention