Ethics are what we use to determine what is right from wrong. In science, it's a system of codes that describes what can and cannot be done by a scientist. When we talk about Henrietta Lacks cells, it's a case of a sacrifice for the greater good. Although the cells were taken from her without her consent when she was receiving cancer treatments, those cells allowed for scientists to develop the first polio vaccines and test chemotherapy drugs. All of these things had a dramatic effect, as they were able to cure debilitating diseases that were a serious danger at that point in time.…
Beauchamp, T. L., & Childress, J. F. (2009). Principles of biomedical ethics (6th ed., pp. 38- 39).New York, NY: Oxford University Press.…
In discussing the difficult subject of biomedical ethics, there are different scenarios that play out differently because of people’s views about morality. Consider the scenario of an eighty year-old man whom we will call Mr. Simpson. Years of getting the flu with complications has left Mr. Simpson’s lungs very weak and unable to take another year of the flu. In fact another year of the flu will likely kill him. He does not want the flu shot because he sincerely believes that the actual flu shot will give him the flu. With further research, the doctor and the family find that Mr. Simpson will accept an immune boosting shot only. If the physician lies to Mr. Simpson about the injection then he will accept it. What it all boils down to is, if the physician tells the truth, then Mr. Simpson will refuse the flu shot, likely contract the flu, and possibly die. On the other hand, if the physician lies to Mr. Simpson, then he will accept the flu shot and potentially be okay for the next flu season. The dilemma lies in what the physician should do; lie to the patient or be truthful.…
s Your project this week deals with confidentiality and scope of practice issues. You’ll also deal with correcting an error made in regards to patient care. You will be evaluated on each project on the accuracy of your responses, the completeness of your responses, your ability to think critically about each situation and your overall writing ability. Your responses to the questions below should be constructed in complete sentences using proper grammar, spelling and punctuation.…
Technology has improved the human species by providing information around the world, leading to developments in different countries. Biotechnology is improving the world of medicine, agriculture, and energy production. In the medical world, technology has a big impact by helping scientists and doctors figure out how to fight off diseases and viruses. For example, there are two individuals, one who has malaria and the other has built up a resistance to malaria. Knowing that an individual has built up resistance to malaria can help, simply by taking a sample of their blood and uploading it to a computer. Scientists will trying to figure out what is the cause for this resistance to malaria, they will have to break down the DNA of the individual who is immune and simply extract the gene repelling malaria. With this knowledge there will be fewer deaths to groups of individuals who have not genetically build up a resistance to malaria in high risk countries. The downfall to biotechnology in the medical world is finding test subjects that will comply with the testing’s. Once the scientists and doctors find a concrete solution, they will be approved by the FDA to release their material to the general public. In the agricultural world, technology has helped us improve plants to become more stable and be able to sustain life in certain temperatures. With the creation of the microscope, we can see what genes we can take out the plant and add to the plant cell, so it can become a super plant. As we grow, global warming is causing the Earth to become hotter each year. Therefore we are then creating plants that can sustain life with less water than the original. We know that with every step we take to advance in this world there is a downfall. The downfall for biotechnology in the agriculture world would be time…
In the patient confidentiality case of Carlos, a 21 year old Hispanic male is being discharged from his hospital stay for a gunshot wound. Carlos is intended to receive nursing care at home from his sister, Consuela. Carlos is secretly a homosexual and is concerned that his secret will be revealed and be disgraced by his family. Carlos pleaded with his physician not to inform his sister that he is HIV-positive. Not informing Consuela would seem to increase her risk of contracting HIV while attending to Carlos’ wounds. The ethical issue is whether Carlos’ physician is justified in breaching confidentiality on the grounds that he has the “duty to warn” Consuela of the risks at hand.…
There are many current legal and ethical issues in bioengineering and biotechnology including athletic and cognitive enhancements, stem cell research, cloning, genetic engineering, and genetically modified organisms. Biotechnology is “the manipulation of biological systems and organisms through technological means”(p. 471). There is tension between valuing liberty to pursue happiness of biotechnologies, and the potential negative outcomes of these technologies. Bioengineering, is the construction of machines to alter or supplement organisms.…
* The religion of Islam provides clear ethical teachings on issues relating to bioethics. These teachings are found in all the major sources of Islamic teachings, the Qur'an, Hadith and Shari’a.…
Ethics and morals need to be considered when the destruction of one human life is acceptable so that another human may live. The first thing to differentiate is that it is ethical to experiment on human tissue, but those experiments on human beings are not ethical. Therefore, it is perfectly ethical to proceed with any and all types of stem cell research as long as human tissue is being used, but it is completely unethical to do embryonic stem cell research, which by its very nature necessitates the killing of a living human embryo to obtain that stem cell (Willke). Science has shown that embryos contain all the necessary parts to grow into a living, breathing human. To understand this we must first review early development biology. J. C. Willke writes:…
The study of Bioethics involves the consideration of ethical issues arising from advancements in medicine and/or biology. The study of bioethics helps with determining the proper decision in regard to medical or biological issues. Bioethics is highly influential in academia, where scholars investigate the various scenarios arising from advancements, but is also influential in the applied realms of biology and medicine. Albert Jonsen, in his book Bioethics, claims "This field has established itself as an integral part of practical or applied philosophy and as a valuable adjunct to health policy and medical practice" (Jonsen 4). When dealing with the human body, ethics must be considered in order to preserve the value of human life. A highly…
For some time now, stem cell research has been a major issue when it comes to ethics. “Ethics, science and religion became further intertwined with politics in the 1990’s, increasing the battles among congress, administrations, and other agencies” (Scott, 2006, p.153). Stem cell research is probably one of the most important scientific advancements in the past one hundred years.…
Bioethics is considered by some to be the decisions made by a person or group using logic and knowledge of right or wrong as it affects current biological issues. It is a growing concern in today’s world where people are caught in a balancing act of human nature and law to determine right and wrong regarding biological and medical issues concerning them. A bioethical issue that has been around for years is physician aid in death. Although this issue is said to give terminally ill patients the comfort and dignity of ending their lives on the terms they choose, some say that decisions are influenced by doctors and infringe upon human rights.…
Ethical debates frequently occur today because of advances in society, technology, science, and many other areas. These arguments are comprised of many people due to the diversity of their interpretations of ethics in these areas. Ethics can be defined as "a system of moral, scruples, principles or values that in itself defines what is right or good behavior" (Shankarkumar, 317). The issue involving xenotransplantation, the sharing of organs between different species, has become a controversial subject with disagreements focusing on the ethical perspectives of the surgery. In order to comprehend the numerous ethical arguments surrounding xenotransplantation, the following three parties must be viewed: physicians, both for and against the surgery, and society.…
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Bioethics encompasses every ethical question relating and pertaining to medicine and the health of living things. Everything from pediatrics to nursing, from euthanasia to birth-pain killer, from the debate of abortion to the law of malpractice is covered by the term bioethics. Bioethics is a very broad, very extensive category of ethics. The concept of a separate set of ideas called bioethics first began in 1846. While it stayed very small, it did experience a resurgence after World War Two. This resurgence was mostly due to the vast array of war crimes committed by the Nazi?s with such tortures as human testing and mass murders. In the 1960?s, the United States had to give death a legal definition. Because of new life support technologies such as heart-lung machines and the lack of dialysis machines, people could now be kept alive artificially. If people weren?t keeping their selves alive, were they really alive at all? Whenever a new medicine or technology is developed for use in the health care community, bioethical questions are raised and answers are demanded and debated, and hopefully answered eventually. In past months, there has been much heated debate over many issues that bioethics encompass. The use of reproductive enhancing fertility drugs (viagra and hMG?s (human menopausal gonadotropins)) has recently been all over newspapers and television due the sudden outbreak of multiple births and cures for impotence. This new advancement in medicine has led to the questioning of the ethical issues surrounding such technologies. Some religions do not allow for such drugs to be used, and some do not believe that it is ?God?s will? to have children unless the person is naturally fertile. Many environmentalists see these new drugs as the end of humankind because of the damage that overpopulation will cause. The debate over fertility drugs is almost as heated as the discussion over abortion. Contraceptive devices have always been a source of disagreement for people…